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NH ranks 13th for fewest firearm deaths

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According to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, New Hampshire has the 13th lowest firearm death rate in the U.S.

There were 132 firearm-related deaths in New Hampshire in 2016, a rate of 9.3 per 100,000 population.

All of New England has a low firearm death rate. Massachusetts has the lowest rate, 3.4 deaths per 100,000 population. Rhode Island came in second (3.1), Connecticut came in fifth (4.6), Maine came in ninth (8.3), and Vermont came in fifteenth (11.1).

Alaska has the highest firearm death rate of 23.3.

Some gun rights advocates may point to these statistics as evidence that stricter gun laws are not necessary to prevent gun violence. After all, New Hampshire has relatively few restrictions on gun ownership compared to other states.

On the other hand, several of the top scoring states – Massachusetts, for example – have much stricter gun laws than New Hampshire.

Click here to learn more about the debate over gun laws in New Hampshire.

These death rate statistics may point to a different problem – mental health. Of the 132 firearm-related deaths in New Hampshire in 2016, 123 were suicide.

Click here to learn more about the policy challenges related to mental health treatment in New Hampshire.

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