The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention restarted the agency’s gun violence research initiative. During an interview on Friday, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky described gun violence as a serious public health threat.

“This is not a conversation about having them or not having them. This is a conversation about how we can make them being here safe,” said Walensky. “The research that we intend to do is going to be squarely about making America safe. Making people safe.”

The agency plans to spend more than $10 million to track...