The U.S. surgeon general has declared gun violence a public health crisis. What could that mean for Philadelphia?

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy declared gun violence a public health crisis on Tuesday, saying that too many Americans have been killed or injured in shootings and that gun violence has had a particularly devastating effect on children and young people.

The declaration comes as health officials and others have urged a focus on the mental and physical effects of firearms, even as gun violence has begun to wane.

Nationwide, deaths by gunfire fell by about 13% last year, one of the largest annual declines on record. And through the first three months of 2024, homicides dropped by 26% more, according to recently released FBI data. Still, Murthy said, the numbers were unacceptable.

The recent decline follows a surge in homicides across the country during the first years of the coronavirus pandemic. In 2021, Philadelphia hit a record-setting level of homicides. Shootings have steadily and drastically decreased in Philadelphia in recent years for reasons that experts say are unclear, part of a nationwide trend. But the city is still in the midst of a gun violence epidemic.

Here’s what we know about the public health crisis declaration.

Murthy said he declared gun violence a public health crisis because of the number of injuries and deaths involving firearms across the country. He also cited the prevalence of mass shootings as a factor.

The surgeon general said there is “broad agreement” that gun violence is a serious problem, citing a poll last year that found most Americans worry at least sometimes that a loved one might be injured by a firearm.

More than 48,000 Americans died from gun injuries in 2022, according to data he cited. Children and young people in particular have been victims of gun violence, Murthy said.

Suicide by gun rates have increased significantly in recent years for Americans under the age of 35. And children in the U.S. are far more likely to die by gunfire than children in other countries, according to research Murthy gathered.

In an effort to combat those trends, Murthy called for a ban on automatic rifles, universal background checks for purchasing guns, and stronger industry regulations, along with laws that would restrict the use of firearms in public spaces and penalize those who fail to safely store their weapons.

None of his suggestions for gun control legislation can be implemented nationwide without being passed by Congress, where gun control is a divisive issue.

Some state legislatures have enacted some of Murthy’s proposals and may consider implementing more.

Such emergency declarations are made in situations in which health consequences can potentially overwhelm efforts to combat them and negatively impact overall health, according to the National Library of Medicine.

Among Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s first acts after taking the oath of office was signing an executive order declaring a public safety emergency in Philadelphia and directing the police department to develop plans to address crime across the city — and to do it within the first 100 days of her administration.

The result was a plan to hire more police officers, reduce violent crime, quell quality-of-life offenses, and shut down the city’s open-air drug markets.

For years, City Council members called for such a declaration, but former Mayor Jim Kenney repeatedly refused calls to do so. Kenney said the move would be little more than symbolic — in part because there was no money attached to it.

The surgeon general’s declaration was welcomed by city officials Tuesday evening in a joint statement from the Philadelphia Police Department, the city Department of Public Health, and the Office of Chief Public Safety Director.

“Surgeon General Murthy’s statement resonates with the sentiments of the majority of Philadelphians and many across the nation, who express genuine concern about their safety and the safety of their loved ones in the face of pervasive gun violence,” the city officials said.

”The designation of gun violence as a public health crisis could open the door to innovative solutions, greater resources, and a more holistic approach to preventing firearm-related injuries and deaths. By treating gun violence as the public health issue it truly is, we can foster safer communities and protect the well-being of our communities,” the city officials said.

After years of record-setting gun crime, Philadelphia has recently seen striking and steady drops in the rate of shootings in the city, with shootings so far this year falling to levels that are near the lowest pace in almost 20 years, according to an Inquirer analysis of police statistics.

Fewer than 100 people have been shot in each of the last seven months, the first time that has happened in a decade, and just the third time the city has seen such a stretch since 2007.

And yet, shootings continue to take lives each day in Philadelphia. As Murthy mentioned in his declaration, children and young people are often most vulnerable to the effects of gun violence.

Last year, 24 children were killed in shootings and many others were injured. In May, an 8-year-old girl was shot and wounded as her father picked her up from school in Kensington.