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Guns bills approved by Fla. Senate
Three bills supporters say will benefit gun owners passed the Florida Senate.
By JAMES L. ROSICA
Associated Press
Posted on Thursday, 04.28.11
Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/04/28/2 ... z1KusjVdJE" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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Prohibiting a doctor from asking about guns?
Do we really need a law about this?

If my doctor doesn't like my guns, I'll find another doctor. Buh-bye.

What am I missing??

RoyGBiv wrote:Prohibiting a doctor from asking about guns?
Do we really need a law about this?

If my doctor doesn't like my guns, I'll find another doctor. Buh-bye.

What am I missing??

I don't remember all the details, but from what I recall and understand:
Doctors want to ask patients with children about firearms in the home so that they may discuss and advise them on safety issues. Some doctors are using this as a platform to preach "don't keep guns in the house with children because they'll get shot." And people worry about it being noted on their medical records and possibly, eventually causing insurance costs to go up for gun owners. One patient refused to answer her pediatrician's question about guns and he told her to find a new doctor.

mgood wrote: so that they may discuss and advise them on safety issues. Some doctors are using this as a platform to preach "don't keep guns in the house with children because they'll get shot."

If my Dr wants to talk guns with my kids (if I had any), he can do it at the range. When I go to the Dr. Office, I want him / her doing medical stuff to fix my issue. Period.

Teamless wrote:

mgood wrote: so that they may discuss and advise them on safety issues. Some doctors are using this as a platform to preach "don't keep guns in the house with children because they'll get shot."

If my Dr wants to talk guns with my kids (if I had any), he can do it at the range. When I go to the Dr. Office, I want him / her doing medical stuff to fix my issue. Period.

I agree.
The stance that many doctors are taking is that it is "medical stuff" because they deal with preventive medicine, such as advising parents to keep poisons out of reach of small children and stuff like that.
If doctors gave some basic pointers on securing your firearms out of reach of toddlers, discussed safes, locks, and stuff like that, I don't think I'd have a problem with it. If they just handed out some brochures on gun safety, I wouldn't have a problem with that. The issue is when anti-gun doctors use this as an avenue to tell people they simply should not have guns in the home.

When I worked in a gun store, I often discussed child safety issues with customers. Especially when I had a first time gun-buyer with a small child in tow or a baby in arms. I'd point out that eventually that kid is going to get big enough to access anything you think you have hidden in your home and that you should give some thought to how you will secure your gun. You might want to get a safe or something. And as soon as they're old enough, start teaching the kid about guns, that it's not a toy, take them to the range and let them see what it can do, take the mystery out of it but let them know that under no circumstances are they to mess with it without the parents around. I didn't go deeply into it. I didn't want to seem like I was lecturing my customers. I just wanted to make sure their eyes were open and that the seed had been planted.

mgood wrote:When I worked in a gun store

and that is the perfect place for that to happen!

Teamless wrote:

mgood wrote:When I worked in a gun store

and that is the perfect place for that to happen!

Yes, I agree. Despite the bad rap that some gun counter commandos have for giving goofy or even false advice, I'd say most people who work in that environment know far more about the subject than your typical first-time buyer.
I can see where doctors would believe child safety to fall within the scope of what they discuss with the patient. A tip or two about safety would not bother many people, I don't think. But when they preach "no guns," then they're pushing their personal beliefs (in an area where they often have little or no expertise), on their patients who come to them for medical attention.
Hey, I've had some pre-nursing classes and quite a bit of first aid training, but I avoided giving medical advice at the gun store.

Wasn't it Florida that there was a lawsuite filed when a couple wished to adopt a child, but child protective services would not allow it because there were guns in the house? Another incident somewhere a couple were not allowed to do foster care because there were guns in the house. If it is true about Dr's. refusing to treat a person because of their belief in guns, then there is a problem. Whether a person has/owns guns or not is none of the Dr's. buisness unless the visit is gun related.

There was something put out by the Pediatric Association in the last two years about this. They wanted to encourage their members to start asking these questions in the doctor's office visits. It seem like Florida is taking a stand against them asking about something that is none of their business.

Coconut: about two bucks
.45ACP JHP: about six bits
Lesson learned when kid sees what a bullet does to something about the size of his own skull: priceless

Best safety lesson my kids ever got. Doctors asking nosy questions never kept a single kid safe.

C-dub wrote:There was something put out by the Pediatric Association in the last two years about this. They wanted to encourage their members to start asking these questions in the doctor's office visits. It seem like Florida is taking a stand against them asking about something that is none of their business.

Most of the major medical associations are anti-gun, but the American Academy of Pediatrics is extremely so:

This statement reaffirms the 1992 position of the American Academy of Pediatrics that the absence of guns from children's homes and communities is the most reliable and effective measure to prevent firearm-related injuries in children and adolescents. A number of specific measures are supported to reduce the destructive effects of guns in the lives of children and adolescents, including the regulation of the manufacture, sale, purchase, ownership, and use of firearms; a ban on handguns and semiautomatic assault weapons; and expanded regulations of handguns for civilian use.

mgood wrote:

Teamless wrote:

mgood wrote: so that they may discuss and advise them on safety issues. Some doctors are using this as a platform to preach "don't keep guns in the house with children because they'll get shot."

If my Dr wants to talk guns with my kids (if I had any), he can do it at the range. When I go to the Dr. Office, I want him / her doing medical stuff to fix my issue. Period.

I agree.
The stance that many doctors are taking is that it is "medical stuff" because they deal with preventive medicine, such as advising parents to keep poisons out of reach of small children and stuff like that.
If doctors gave some basic pointers on securing your firearms out of reach of toddlers, discussed safes, locks, and stuff like that, I don't think I'd have a problem with it. If they just handed out some brochures on gun safety, I wouldn't have a problem with that. The issue is when anti-gun doctors use this as an avenue to tell people they simply should not have guns in the home.

I agree completely with this. When my kids were younger, our Pediatrician asked if we had guns in the house. We said yes. He asked if they were secured or something like that and we said yes and that was the end of it. I don't have a problem with this principle - I think it is appropriate along the same lines of parental education on topics like car seats and poisons.

But, I have read the American Academy of Pediatrics positions and now understand the concerns about possible data in electronic medical records and insurance rates and I now realize that many doctors may have an another motive entirely. So I also understand the concerns about privacy as well. In my opinion, it all comes down to whether or not you have a trusting relationship with your children's Pediatrician.

We have bleach, and Windex with ammonia in the house.

Don't recall any doctor asking if cabinets were childproofed, which they were, but I don't recall them asking.

The cashier at HEB never asked either.

So if it's their responsibility, is that who gets sued if something occurs and they fail to ask?

RoyGBiv wrote:Prohibiting a doctor from asking about guns?
Do we really need a law about this?

If my doctor doesn't like my guns, I'll find another doctor. Buh-bye.

What am I missing??

It is to forestall reporting of gun ownership to the CDC so that government and insurance companies can't build a case against firearms from a healthcare perspective.