1 Goldstick JECunningham RMCarter PM Current causes of death in children and adolescents in the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced health systems worldwide to address the foundational meaning of disease prevention and harm reduction. While global attention has focused on this unprecedented pandemic, in the USA, an accelerating shift over the past decade has occurred in the leading cause of death among children and adolescents aged 0–19 years. According to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published in 2022, firearms are the leading cause of death among young people in the USA, due to both a sharp increase in firearm fatalities (83% increase since 2013) and a progressive decrease in motor vehicle fatalities (51% decrease since 2000).The increase in firearm deaths is largely due to increased firearm homicides, as nearly 60% of firearm deaths among young people since 2010 were homicides.

Source: New York Times May 26, 2022 22:32 UTC