Last month, the U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, released a landmark advisory on gun violence as a pressing public health issue. This urgent call for the nation’s awareness and action reflects a reality that many cities have been wrestling with since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when community gun violence spiked to record levels, and local leaders increasingly invested in evidence-based interventions to address this crisis.
New Jersey, like many other states across the country, has worked with its partners — including the New Jersey Violence Intervention and Prevention Coalition — to strategically enhance the community violence-intervention ecosystem to address the impact of violence in neighborhoods. Gov. Phil Murphy has pointed to this public health approach as a contributing factor to the state’s historic reduction in shootings in 2023 to the lowest number in nearly 15 years. Yet, with 924 shootings across the state last year — including 191 that were fatal — much work remains to be done.
While last year’s drop in gun violence was certainly a notable milestone, the surgeon general’s advisory notes that to solve this public health crisis will require adequate and sustained funding for programs that have been shown to work. For example, the Paterson Healing Collective — a hospital-based violence intervention program in Paterson — is having a real impact on the city’s hardest-hit communities. Programs such as this one coordinate social services that address the specific needs of those dealing with the aftermath of violence, connecting violently injured individuals to services that support their ability to heal and thrive, such as GED assistance, job readiness training, housing, funeral arrangements, family assistance, and more. They also provide training programs in mental health/trauma recognition, conflict resolution and de-escalation, which are critical to breaking the cycle of violence.
Championed by the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention for nearly 15 years, hospital-based violence intervention programs are one of several strategies that comprise the community violence intervention ecosystem, an approach that coordinates violence reduction efforts across city agencies, health systems, community organizations, and law enforcement. These programs provide services and support to the individuals at highest risk of violence in the most impacted communities, which are often communities of color that have endured long-standing disinvestment. This reality plays out clearly in New Jersey, where Black people are 34 times more likely to die by gun homicide than white people.
In this model of care, violence prevention professionals — specially trained staff who often have lived experience of violence — connect with violently injured individuals who are at greatest risk of reinjury or retaliation. This connection typically takes place in the emergency department or at hospital bedside — when people may be more receptive to support and guidance — and continues after hospital discharge through ongoing support and access to community-based services that make up the broader community violence intervention ecosystem.
Increased federal and state funding for community violence intervention has proven critical to reversing the significant growth in violent crime that was observed during the pandemic, including in New Jersey, where the state’s drop in homicides last year indicates that the investment is working. However, to ensure the long-term sustainability of these evidence-based interventions, it is just as important to diversify their funding streams to include more stable sources.
That’s where S-1407/A-4201 comes in. This bill — which is currently under consideration by the Legislature — would enable Medicaid coverage and reimbursement for violence prevention services and smartly takes advantage of the opportunity to utilize federal matching funds, which will cover 50% of the costs associated with this benefit. We urge lawmakers to pass this legislation now and make New Jersey the eighth state in the nation — alongside California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Oregon, Illinois, and New York — to ensure its Medicaid program serves as a steady funding source for evidence-based violence intervention programs. It’s an easy choice to make to ensure that the people at highest risk of reinjury can receive the trauma-informed care they need and the opportunity to thrive they deserve.