The American Medical Association made a near-unanimous vote to lobby against a rule that prohibits federal research into gun-related violence.
The call to lobby for the change came during the meeting of the AMA's policy-makers, the House of Delegates. It declared gun violence a "public health crisis."
Republicans in Congress are opposing the policy change.
"I don't particularly see the need for it, quite frankly," Oklahoma Rep. Tom Cole said,
according to The Hill.
He added that it's more likely that GOP leaders will increase funding for the FBI to make background checks better.
Texas Rep. Michael Burgess, a member of the House Doctors Caucus, said he opposed the unfreezing of funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to research gun violence.
Burgess said researchers staying away from the topic "seems to have worked well. I don't favor changing it."
Rep. Bob Dold of Illinois is the only Republican lawmaker who supports the change.
Many Republicans appear to feel that the call for research is a way for the Obama administration to push stricter gun laws.
"Research is good, but unfortunately this administration has used terrorism despicably to advance their gun control issue," Arizona Rep. Trent Franks said, according to The Hill.
The moratorium on federal gun research comes from a 1997 budget amendment that bans federal money "to advocate or promote gun control." Republicans adopted the ban in 1997 after lobbying from groups such as the National Rifle Association, according to The Hill.
The amendment in 1997 was named after Georgia Rep. Jay Dickey, but he is now campaigning to change the wording of the law.
The AMA has supported waiting periods and background checks for gun buyers for decades,
according to Forbes.
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