The events of Oct. 25, 2023 have changed Maine forever.

The murder of 18 Mainers, and the injury of many others, in our own city of Lewiston has left us all heartbroken and stunned.

We hoped it would never happen here; now it has.

As the dead are buried, and families go through the grieving process, the 5,000 plus physicians of the Maine Medical Association and Maine Osteopathic Association will shake our heads in disbelief, care for the injured and the grieving, and swallow our bitterness about the tragedies and public health crisis caused by unfettered access to firearms in America.

We hope that the families of those killed and injured feel the deep sympathies and prayers of the physicians of Maine.

We hope the emergency responders, nurses, physicians, and other health care workers who stepped up to this occasion feel our appreciation for their care of our fellow Mainers.

We hope the police officers who ran into the danger know how much we admire and thank them for their daily efforts to keep us as safe as possible.

But, we are sick and tired of platitudes which do not carry forward into meaningful actions.

We cannot continue to ignore one of America’s most serious public health crises. Deaths by firearms have increased significantly in the last few years including homicide, suicide, and accidents.

In 2020, firearms became the leading cause of death among our children from 1 to 19 years of age — eclipsing motor vehicle accidents, cancer, drug overdoses, suffocation, and drownings.

Some 77% of homicides and more than 50% of suicides are the result of a firearm. One half of the murders of women are committed by a current or former intimate partner or spouse. Surely this is not what our forefathers imagined when they codified the right to bear arms in our Constitution.

We, the physician caregivers for more than a million Mainers, will stand up to end this mayhem through the passage of sensible firearm safety laws in Maine and in Washington, D.C., including a ban on the assault weapons of war, high-capacity magazines, and gun purchases without review and registration.

We will stand up to the gun lobby that has exploited the right to responsibly bear arms to include the possession of weapons of war, thereby contributing directly to the epidemic of mass shootings in our country.

There is much work to be done to pass common sense gun laws to protect our communities, and the Maine Medical Association and Maine Osteopathic Association will work with Maine’s governor, Legislature, and congressional delegation to close that deadly gap.

In addition, we call on changes to the American health care system as described in the MMA’s recent policy statement dated June 7, 2023, which would increase access to care, including behavioral health care. Coordinated care for all, including authority to alert law enforcement of potential threats of violence is as necessary to prevent tragedies like this, as it is to prevent child and elder abuse or neglect.

Furthermore, we urge that any barriers into research surrounding gun related incidents be immediately lifted. Such research is necessary to ensure the public and our policy makers are fully and accurately informed. Likewise, any impediments to health care workers or law enforcement discussing firearm safety with the public must end.

The physicians of Maine are dedicated to the health and well-being of our friends, families, and communities. We take our role in advancing public health measures seriously. The threat of violence involving firearms is real. But just as real is that these measures are supported by the majority of our people.

Eighteen dead in Lewiston.

Enough with thoughts.

We now need to lead with deeds.

Paul Cain, MD, is president of the Maine Medical Association, James Jarvis, MD, is chairman of the board of directors, and Erik Steele, DO, is immediate past president. Jodie Hermann, DO, is president of the Maine Osteopathic Association, Kathryn Brandt, DO, is president-elect, and Brian Kaufman, DO, is immediate past president. 

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