Last week a 14-year-old opened fire at his high school, killing four, two of his fellow students and two teachers, and injuring nine others. After his rampage, he was taken into custody. And while we don’t know what prompted him to turn Apalachee High School into the latest scene of the ongoing American tragedy of school violence, we know that law enforcement was already aware of him. He had been questioned by federal agents just a year ago about threats that he allegedly made online. As the details surrounding this latest tragedy emerge, they are heartbreakingly familiar. They sound like the details of so many places that are now indelibly etched into American history: Sandy Hook, Uvalde, and now Apalachee. A suspect who displays signs of mental illness has easy access to firearms, which turns into a deadly combination.

School shootings are only a part of the bigger picture of gun violence in America, an epidemic that has gripped our nation over the past few decades. There have been 133 shootings on school grounds already this year. What makes this number, and the tragedy that took place in Georgia, tremendously frustrating is that every time one of these takes place policymakers throw up their hands and claim that nothing can be done about it.

We hear a lot of talk about violence taking place in cities, but gun violence is a scourge in rural areas as well. In fact, rural states have a higher average number of gun deaths per 100,000 than more metropolitan states. With narratives of dangerous crime-ridden cities flooding our airwaves this election season, you may be surprised to learn that Mississippi averages 29.6 gun deaths per 100,000 and Alabama averages 25.5. What’s the difference between those states and their peers? In part, laws that restrict access to guns. Laws are never going to prevent these tragedies alone, but the evidence points to laws like mandatory background checks being effective in reducing gun deaths.

Laws restricting access is an important start. But we should be approaching our gun violence epidemic like we approach any other public health crisis. The more preventative and proactive actions we can take, the better. We know that there are underlying risk factors that increase the chances of someone engaging in gun violence. Having access to guns is obviously one of those factors, but other factors include a history of violent behavior, exposure to violence, and alcohol and drug abuse. The community that someone grows up in can also increase the chances of gun violence. Communities that have high concentrations of poverty and lack economic opportunities are more likely to experience gun violence. What this means is that our approach to addressing the gun violence crisis in our nation must be holistic. A central part of that is requiring permits for anyone purchasing a firearm. Critics will be quick to point out that this would not have stopped the latest episode of violence in Georgia because the shooter’s father bought it for him. That only demonstrates further that laws alone will not be enough. We also need policies that address the poverty experienced by our communities, both rural and urban, and invest in creating economic opportunities. Investing in counseling for those in crisis can be another important step as well, but mental healthcare remains financially out of reach for many Americans, especially those living in the types of communities where gun violence is most likely to happen.

There are no easy answers here, but what’s not useful is doing nothing and just waiting for the next shooting. Republicans often point to mental health as a cause of these events. They’re right, but what actions are our elected officials taking to make mental healthcare more accessible? Democrats point to firearm access. They’re right too, but we have gotten little to no reform from our elected officials and when they do try to do something, they also have to take on a Supreme Court that has a severely limited view of the Second Amendment.

It has been said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If that’s true, then our approach to gun violence is insane. Our elected officials will offer up their thoughts and prayers and then go back to collecting their campaign contributions from special interests. In the meantime, mental healthcare will remain inaccessible for many while guns will remain too accessible to those who shouldn’t have them. The result is that another shooting will take place. It is not a question of “if” but “when.” Then we will enter the same cycle again. And again. And again.