President Biden announces new military and veteran suicide prevention strategy

President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced a new military and veteran suicide prevention strategy that includes promoting safe firearms storage and outlining best practices for firearms dealers.The plan includes a new federal focus on improving the safety of lethal means, a voluntary exercise to reduce the risk of suicide by limiting access to items that cause self-harm, including drugs, firearms or sharp instruments. . The Justice Department says the White House will soon finalize a rule clarifying that firearms dealers must provide safe gun storage or safety equipment for purchase.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also released a best practice guide to remind all federal firearms dealers to encourage them to take additional steps as well as legally required steps to keep customers and communities safe. Will do .

"On an average day, 17 elders die by suicide—not at a distant place, but right here at home. Two service members die by suicide every day of the year. They are our daughters. Our sons. Our parents. Spouses. Siblings. Dear friends and fighting buddies," Biden writes in the report.The president continued: "Each of these precious lives leaves loved ones who feel their absence every day, like a black hole in the middle of their chest."

The new comprehensive strategy announced Tuesday is meant to build on the Biden administration's previous gun violence prevention actions. Earlier this year, Biden directed the Justice Department to publish model "red flag" legislation for states that allows the temporary removal of guns from people at high risk of harming themselves or others.

Biden has said he would like to see a national "red flag" law passed by Congress as well as legislation to encourage states to enforce their "red flag" laws.As part of the new strategy, the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Justice and Veterans Affairs as well as the Office of Emergency Medical Services within the Department of Transportation, jointly formed a plan to address the safety of lethal means. Will prepare a plan. The White House said that awareness, education, training and program evaluation.

The campaign will include public service announcements, paid media, social media, storage maps to help individuals find where they can safely store firearms outside their homes and lethal means by non-medical counselors, Safety training opportunities for crisis responders, health care professionals, family members and others.

Best practices issued by the ATF to all federal firearms dealers will include materials to distribute to customers to help them better understand their legal obligations as firearms owners, the Department of Justice for intentional infringement. Summary of the zero-tolerance approach. The White House says the Gun Control Act reminds people of the obligation to run background checks for firearms transfers and makes recommendations on how to implement safety and security measures to secure firearms inventories.