Balance state spending on mental health and gun control

In Maine, there is renewed energy after the Lewiston experience, a renewed focus on mental health, and a longstanding debate over gun control. In his week alone earlier this month, the Press Herald published three of his op-eds on mental health.

The letter's author, David Maltz, linked “impulsivity,” gun violence, and suicide to the 72-hour waiting period before purchasing a gun. The next day, Dana Williams suggested that churches and other organizations focus in part on enacting “risk protection orders.” In an op-ed published the next day, Paul Potvin pointed to Maine's “particularly high suicide rate” and proposed closing “loopholes” in background checks for private gun sales.

Each of these proposals has its own merits, but none consider important facts before charting a path forward. Do we really want to establish a process for “mental health providers” to document who can and cannot possess guns? This is a weakness. Even the police didn't want to make this call. This is a red flag law avoidance mechanism, well-intentioned but unrealistic.

And while it's true that many gun deaths in Maine are suicides, there is no evidence to support the idea that Maine people are particularly impulsive or have a particularly high suicide rate. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the state ranks 16th in the nation for suicides, in the top third of the country. Maine's rural nature is often cited as a reason for suicides, but by my count there are 15 less rural states with higher suicide rates. Yes, suicide is terrible. Yes, you need to be careful to prevent that. But we don't seem to understand the problem very clearly.

What are the facts? First, Maine ranks 9th in the nation for gun violence deaths, unchanged since 2015. However, while the ranking has not changed, the numbers have gone up. Second, Maine's gun violence death rate is 14th in the nation and the highest in New England, an increase from 2015 when it was 9th. The simple fact is that deaths from gun violence are increasing, both in actual numbers and percentages.

Third, Maine is already one of the most generous states in the nation when it comes to mental health spending. Maine spends more per capita on mental health services than any other state, according to statistics from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. According to a 2017 report from the Institute for Mental Illness Policy, Maine spent the highest percentage of its state budget on mental health issues in the country.

If these are true, what's our problem? Spending on mental health is not the problem. The question may not be how much money you spend, but how you spend it. Despite spending the most per capita on mental health, Maine ranks 14th from the bottom in gun violence deaths, while Florida, which spends the least, ranks 17th. , why is it only three spots lower than Maine?

There is no clear link between state spending on mental health and gun violence deaths. To be proactive in reducing deaths from gun violence and to better manage state resources, we need to thoroughly understand this link.

The solution is to balance state spending on mental health with gun control.

We know we're already doing our part for the former, but some focus would be helpful. At the very least, we need red flag laws. And the latter should be addressed by adopting a waiting period of at least 72 hours. It cannot be one or the other. Must be both. they are linked.

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