The Alliance for Gun Responsibility released the following statement on today’s U.S. Senate Health Care Vote:

“We are extremely disappointed to see today that U.S. Senate Republicans voted to begin debate on repealing the Affordable Care Act. This means that millions of Americans are at risk of losing life-saving health care coverage, including the more than 200 Americans that are shot–yet live–every single day.

Those who survive a gunshot face a long and painful road to recovery, filled with numerous surgeries and lasting physical and psychological effects. Without adequate health care, they are also left with crippling medical costs. Individuals face on average $25,000 in medical expenses every year. As a nation, that’s $8.6 billion dollars in annual direct costs and $229 billion in annual indirect costs. What’s more, those most at risk of gun violence are the populations that have received care through expanded coverage from the Affordable Care Act.

As the U.S. Senate debates health care policy over the hours and days to come, we hope they consider the human costs of taking health care coverage away from millions of Americans and vote to maintain quality, affordable coverage for all.”