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. 2025 Aug 20:ip-2025-045700.
doi: 10.1136/ip-2025-045700. Online ahead of print.

Examining the impacts of firearm purchaser licensing laws on firearm deaths among youth aged 15 to 24, by age group-USA, 1990-2019

Katrina S Kennedy  1 , Elizabeth D Wagner  2 , Nicholas S Meyerson  2   3 , Stephen N Oliphant  4 , Alexander D McCourt  2   3 , April M Zeoli  4   5 , Daniel W Webster  2   3 , Cassandra K Crifasi  2   3
Affiliations

Examining the impacts of firearm purchaser licensing laws on firearm deaths among youth aged 15 to 24, by age group-USA, 1990-2019

Katrina S Kennedy et al. Inj Prev. .

Abstract

Background: Youth aged 15-24 experience high rates of firearm homicide and suicide, yet there is limited research on the impact of promising preventative policies, such as firearm purchaser licensing (FPL) laws, among this age group. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of adopting or repealing an FPL law on homicide and suicide among those aged 15-24, by age subgroup (ie, 15-17, 18-20, 21-24).

Methods: Mortality data from 1990 to 2019 were obtained from the National Center for Health Statistics. We used augmented synthetic controls to estimate the effect of FPL law adoption in Connecticut and Maryland and repeal in Missouri and Michigan on youth homicide and suicide rates. Analyses were stratified by age subgroup and firearm involvement.

Results: FPL adoption was associated with decreases in firearm homicide and suicide among those aged 15-24 overall and among most age subgroups in Connecticut. FPL repeal was consistently associated with increases in firearm suicide among each age subgroup, with less consistent results for firearm homicide.

Discussion and conclusions: FPL law changes had meaningful impacts on firearm homicide and suicide among youth aged 15-24, with consistent protective effects observed following adoption in Connecticut and consistent harmful effects following repeal in Missouri. Mixed results in Maryland and Michigan highlight the importance of policy features and sociopolitical context in shaping the effectiveness of these laws. These findings reinforce the effectiveness of FPL laws as a strategy to reduce firearm-related mortality among youth.

Keywords: Firearm; Legislation; Mortality; Policy; Policy analysis; Youth.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

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