Docs Seek Injuction Against Guns At Home Question Law

June 27, 2011

Calling the new law constitutionally vague and overreaching, a group of physicians and medical organizations have asked a federal judge in Miami to suspend, at least temporarily, enforcement of a state law that prohibits health care practitioners from asking certain patients if they own guns.

Attorneys representing at least three physicians and medical associations including the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Florida chapter say the so-called “Docs v. Glocks” law unconstitutionally steps between health care providers and their patients. Scott signed the measure into law in early June.

Backers of the measure, which provides exemptions to the “Don’t Ask” provision, were led by the National Rifle Association, which argued that gun ownership was a constitutionally protected right.

Opponents of the law say health care practitioners should be allowed to ask about gun ownership and whether weapons are properly stored as part of a battery of questions aimed at minimizing accidents in the home, especially among children.

Comments

26 Responses to “Docs Seek Injuction Against Guns At Home Question Law”

  1. Chris on June 30th, 2011 8:23 am

    I was asked this question on a questionaire in Birmingham, AL in 1999. There were only two answers so I voted for the write in candidate of “none of your **** business”. The doctor laughed and said that his secretary had forgotten to mark through this question and the he gets his forms from some company that puts it on all the forms. Turns out, he was a sporting clays kind of guy that owned $10,000+ Perazzi’s and stuff. We got along pretty good after that visit and I wouldn’t see any other doctor in the area if I could help it. I find it hard to trust folks that are mean to kids and dogs and people that don’t own a firearm or two. I might be the weird one, I don’t know. Back to the point, it is of no concern to a doctor what I own and keep in my house. If there is a life threatening injury, just ask me, I will tell you whom is responsible and what object was used to cause the injury. If I can’t tell you, it is probably pretty obvious what the problem is.

  2. Scobie Wilcoxon on June 29th, 2011 7:54 pm

    I will go along with no law prohibiting the asking of the question…

    if…

    they don’t pass a law tying my ability to get medical treatment as to whether or not I answer the question.

  3. owners rights on June 29th, 2011 4:34 pm

    If there has been a crime where a child has been hurt and taken to the hospital, then it is time for the doctor to report the incident to the police.

    Let the police investigate and ask the questions. No, a doctor need not ask the question at all!!

  4. David Huie Green on June 29th, 2011 1:25 pm

    or you could say, “No, I don’t own A gun.”

    David for numbers

  5. sktmax on June 29th, 2011 12:58 pm

    Who cares? If my doctor asks me if I own a gun my answer would be simple. “Yes I sure do”.

  6. JIM W on June 28th, 2011 1:10 pm

    This is intended for Kathy! Don’t make statements like what you directed at me. “Your gun is not your GOD and if it is your in serious trouble.” No one ever implied such and it is unwarranted! Yes I have a weapon notice how I refer to it. Not as a gun because I spent so many years in the military I respect and know what it will do to a human body. You can bet your last dollar if someone is harming my family I will protect them. It is not I you have to worry about or the average gun owner it is the criminals you need be worried about. If you took all the guns away the criminals would still have them because they are criminals! Get your idealistic head out of the sand and don’t attack other people for expressing their opinion. It is still our our right to express last I checked. And yes that to is being challenged all the time just goes to show how extreme our Country has come to be.
    If you had read my comment close enough you would have seen I stated “unless warranted asking”. I do beleive that if someone is mentally ill it needs to be asked of the family and of the person. Just saying the more you try and regulate the more rights we as citizens loose. Careful what you ask for because the government will gladly take your rights so they have all the power.

  7. bob hudson on June 28th, 2011 12:38 pm

    Dear Ms. Gibson, there is a current move in this country to collect information, from the far left, (Liberals) that would create a national data base in which all guns, would be tracked, ( which is illegal) so that if the government wish to ban gun owner ship. they would know who has what and where they are. This his how they did it in Australia, Europe , Canada , and all other nations that ban ownership of weapons. The U.N is very active in this cause. Do not wish to offend, but this is real. This is not a scare tactic, The reason we have the 2nd amendment is to protect ourselves from invasion, or a government that might wish to oppress us The city of New Orleans went around after katrina , and took over a 1000, guns from law abiding people. The NRA got them back after going to court. Our fore fathers knew that this might happen and gave us a way around it. And a oppressive government truly fear’s a armed population. We have enough gun laws. Just enforce what we have.

  8. mousewife on June 28th, 2011 11:10 am

    it is no ones business how many guns someone owns. Criminals get guns and do you think they are gonna tell the dr. how many they have or if they own one/

  9. Wilma Gibson on June 28th, 2011 11:04 am

    I agree with Kathy-fright keeps the gun business making enough money to buy off just about any politican. My husband hunted as does my son but they were not obssessed with guns. They were never used for protection. Let me ask you “why” would you care for someone knowing how many guns you own? I thought most of you would be proud to bragg about this. Do you actively support “Freedom of Speech” when you don’t agree with the speech or the deliverer of the speech as you do the right to bear arms? Just wondering

  10. Bob Hudson on June 28th, 2011 9:58 am

    You know Kathy, I have a Doctor, if He thinks my child is in danger, they can call me the parent, and we will talk about it. Same goes for grand ma, or dad.You see that is the right thing to do. But this is how it starts, pretty soon it show’s up on your information sheet . Do you smoke. how much, do you drink, how much, do you own fire arms, how many.So if you wish to kill a snake, you cut it’s head off. And this ruling does just that. let’s stop it before it even get’s started.God Bless all those who got this ruling push thru. It is what we the people , or majority want.

  11. Marc Cayson on June 28th, 2011 9:55 am

    Hey Kathy, how about we ask if they have a clothes line I’ve seen people hang themselves with one, Kitchen knives they could cut their wrists, a car carbon monoxide poisoning, cleaning supplies, they could poison themselves a multi story house they could jump off. Do you see where the train of though you a are taking leads ?

  12. Marc Cayson on June 28th, 2011 9:40 am

    If a doctors asks questions that are none of his business ask some of him. Like his sex life. See if they like the intrusion.

  13. Kathy on June 28th, 2011 8:55 am

    Happy to enlighten you!! Your son or daughter may contemplate suicide or homicide and make a general statement about how they would to the doctor. But the doctor with this wonderful new law can’t inquire about guns in the house, it is the cardinal rule. How about the demented granny who may find a gun to kill those thieves that may be you or your daughter. A lot of good reasons to inquire. Your gun is not your GOD and if it is your in serious trouble.

  14. JIM W on June 27th, 2011 5:27 pm

    @ justme: Take your kids hunting and you will not have to hunt for your kids! Just Sayin!!
    Well said sir! This indeed is just another invasion of privacy. Why would a doctor want to get into where you have a gun in your home or not. If you have done nothing to warrant them asking the question then they should not be asking it! Some of these groups are getting absolutely stupid with all this stuff! What the heck ever happend to our Constitution? Somebody please tell me. It seems what the other persons or small groups want is more important that what the majority want. How does this happen? It happens because we sit on our rears and allow it. Wake up America how much more is it goig to take?
    The doctors should be in the medical business not the gun business. By the way my daughter is a doctor and she knows how to hunt and fire weapons and has a carry permit. But yet she still saves lives. As someone else pointed out it is not guns that kill, it is people who do. So I can see if there is someone who is mentally ill then they certainly should never have access to a gun! Other than that doctors stay out of my business that is not what I am paying you for! I am paying you to take care of me medically not interrogate me! Just saying!

  15. Just Me on June 27th, 2011 12:29 pm

    Ask me about my guns, one loaded safety on, ready to use by bed in my room…. wanna see it……. break in and I will show you the barrel end!!!

    The rest are in the locked gun case or stored in locked carring cases.

    My wife and children know how to use it, where it is, and what to do with it.
    We are a family that hunt, fish and camp togather.

    Take your kids hunting and you will not have to hunt for your kids! Just Sayin!!

  16. OldMarine on June 27th, 2011 11:32 am

    I would immediately fire any doctor who ask such a question as that , refuse to pay for the visit , and file a complaint against him

    I do not ask if he owns a gun

  17. Fairlane63 on June 27th, 2011 10:40 am

    This law seems rather silly. So what if a doctor asks about guns? You can tell him to MYOB or go to another doctor. Or, you could take the opportunity to educate the doctor on guns—most of them are pretty ignorant on the topic and it’s a good chance to begin converting the doctor to a pro-common-sense way of thinking.

    If our local state legislators really wanted to promote gun rights, they would:
    1) Provide for CCW with no license. Why should I have to pay $100+ and get permission from the government to exercise a basic right.
    2) Promote a state constitutional amendment to get rid of the silly 3-day wait when purchasing handguns.

    REAL pro-gun legislators would make these two items a priority. Greg Evers and Clay Ingram, are you listening?

  18. Bob hudson on June 27th, 2011 9:11 am

    And there is just one more thing. You can take a loaded gun , place it on a table, and if no one ever touch it , or picked it up, it would not kill a soul, from now to the end of time.So do guns kill people? NO, they do not.People kill people , and have been doing it since the dawn of time.It makes me very angry to have any one, try to tell me I do not have the right to defend my self or to put food on the table.It amazes me that there are those who advocate killing unborn children(liberals in general) but then turn around and say Oh, you hunt and fish, you own a gun, the you must be a violet person. Let me ask you, who is really the most violent?I thank God that we live in a pro gun state. And would not live in any other kind.

  19. Bob hudson on June 27th, 2011 8:57 am

    God Bless the NRA! They do not need to know this or have access to this information. Just a bunch of would be gun banner’s who are trying to find a new way to collect information for the Government. That is how this all got started in the first place. A doctor is NOT suppose in inject his or her feeling about this subject. It is my 2nd amendment right to bear arms. In this so called age of information, it would be part of your records, And they share those with every one, no matter what they say.

  20. Jerry A on June 27th, 2011 8:44 am

    @Kathy, please enlighten us as to why you think it is a doctor’s business if we are gun owners or not. That is just purely ludicrous.

  21. Jerry A on June 27th, 2011 8:41 am

    More intrusion into our lives from people that have no business intruding. It is no doctors business whether I have or how many guns I have in my house. If one should ever ask me, I would tell him that it is not any of his concern.

  22. 429SCJ on June 27th, 2011 8:24 am

    When I see all the senseless violence that goes on, I know what the deal is, I have to make self defense one of my priorities. When someone attemps to rob and harm you, I suggest you use harsh lanuage, as for me I will rely on kinetic energy. That is how the NRA keeps me inline as a proud member!

  23. Kathy on June 27th, 2011 7:39 am

    As one can see ignorance is dangerous. Lets run scared of what we might not understand and make it into a much bigger deal than it is. That is how the NRA keeps you in line.

  24. jp on June 27th, 2011 7:31 am

    Next trhe question will be-”do you have your knves stored properly?” How about
    your power tools? The fact is, now with “OBAMACARE” the government will be in
    control of all medical records for each and every citizen, deadbeat, and illegal
    alien in the country. The information gathered and entered in these peoples’
    file will be sent to the IRS who is in charge of overseeing everyones’ healthcare.
    Soon the question may be- “do you own a Bible?” If the answer is “yes”, you
    could be considered “unstable” and your gun rights revoked

    Impossible you say. So was the idea of legal abortion in the 1940’s. Who knows
    how much futher mankind will regress before the Lord returns?

  25. EJ on June 27th, 2011 6:28 am

    Paul, it’s the best and only answer, ’cause it isn’t

  26. paul on June 27th, 2011 12:36 am

    If they asked me I would tell them it ain’t none of their business.