Gun owners should carry liability insurance

Who pays for the hospital bills and funerals for those injured or killed from gun use? Ought it not be the person responsible for the use of the firearm, in the same manner that it is when a person driving a vehicle is responsible for the damage it causes in an accident? I own guns, four of them, and it strikes me as odd that I do not have to carry liability insurance on them in the same way that I have to on my vehicles. After all, according to the CDC, deaths caused by guns are nearly identical to the number of deaths caused by vehicles per year.

Mandatory gun liability insurance ought to be required for all gun owners. After all, who else can provide risk assessments, background checks and bear the financial burden of gun-related injuries or deaths better than insurance companies? Mandatory liability insurance seems reasonable, responsible, proactive and moves the 'debate” beyond political talking points and into a new direction.

Perhaps it is time that we emphasize the 'well-regulated” part of the Second Amendment?

Jerry Bertelson

Cedar Rapids