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Debate simmers over doctors asking about guns
Virginian-Pilot ^ | February 10, 2013 | Amy Jeter

Posted on 02/10/2013 4:58:35 AM PST by 4buttons

Do you have a gun in your home?

For some, that's a loaded question - particularly when asked by a doctor.

A debate is simmering over when and whether physicians should be allowed to talk to their patients about firearms.

Doctor groups say physicians are obligated to warn their patients about guns along with other health risks, such as riding in a car without wearing a seat belt. However, gun rights advocates balk at what they see as a needless invasion of privacy and blatant attempt at gun control advocacy.

(Excerpt) Read more at hamptonroads.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: firearms; guncontrol; healthcare; secondamendment
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Slippery slope?

I think so.

1 posted on 02/10/2013 4:58:47 AM PST by 4buttons
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To: 4buttons

Q—Do you have a gun in the home?

A1—”No” (Actually, there’s a dozen)

A2—”...Next question?”


2 posted on 02/10/2013 5:07:53 AM PST by Flintlock (TRUTH--It's the new hate speach.)
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To: 4buttons
The immediate counter question is to ask the doctor about their firearms training and certifications, their knowledge of safe handling and storage techniques and their legal liability should patients follow their advice.
3 posted on 02/10/2013 5:09:26 AM PST by Truth29
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To: Truth29

They should ask the Dr if he has a gun! And if he has one in his house. I wonder if this would make the Dr. feel safe, knowing people with guns, know that in his house there are no guns. Not very American having a home with no gun.


4 posted on 02/10/2013 5:10:59 AM PST by rovenstinez
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To: 4buttons

Most doctors aren’t going to get into this type of questioning. They’ve got less than three minutes that they want to deal with you, and just move on. The guy who gets into this line of questions...you should just give long pauses and ask what he means....eating up time. If you can get this guy to spend twenty-five minutes focused on the gun business, rather than the pains you are suffering...you will eventually drive the guy out of business. Trust me...they need to hustle through twelve patients an hour...to make a real profit. Anything less than six patients an hour....they are losing money.

You should have your responses already thought up...drag out the interview. Act curious. Ask if antique guns are different from regular guns. Ask if shotguns are better choices than rifles. Try to make him take the position of an expert on rifles...rather than an expert on medicine. Most of these guys who get into the questions....will be fairly naive about how you drag them through a long-winded experience...about nothing.


5 posted on 02/10/2013 5:13:37 AM PST by pepsionice
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To: Truth29

Correct! I suppose it would be rude to ask the Doctor if they wanted to be paid for the office visit. The number of ignorant sob’s running this Government is staggering!


6 posted on 02/10/2013 5:15:30 AM PST by JohnD9207 (Isn't freedom worth fighting for?)
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To: Flintlock

It’s been slippery for decades. It’s hard to conceive of a time when people could just buy a gun like they’d buy a tool at the hardware store, a time when a shotgun was a suitable present for an 8 yo, and he would be taught to use it. That is the freedom our forefathers had, and we have lost. Registration is but the backdoor to a database, which is the groundwork for confiscation.


7 posted on 02/10/2013 5:16:40 AM PST by mrsmel (One Who Can See)
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To: 4buttons

Although talked about for a number of years, I first encountered the question when asked to update my medical history, on a doctor visit late 2012. I refused to answer any of the questions upon reading “are there guns in the home” as one of five pages of intrusive questions, for both men and women.

I asked the Doctor where these questions came from and his comment was “homeland security”. Ultimately I see where this might be headed, if not headed off at the pass. No history no medical treatment.


8 posted on 02/10/2013 5:17:22 AM PST by wita
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To: 4buttons
Coming soon.............If you know of a neighbor in your neighborhood who you think may have DANGEROUS FIREARMS that may HARM YOUR CHILDREN it is your civic duty to report this to your law enforcement officials immediately and receive a nice gift card for your troubles.
9 posted on 02/10/2013 5:17:53 AM PST by ronnie raygun (Lexington and Concord Americans experience thier first gun grab attempt)
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To: 4buttons

I fired my doctor over this issue 2 years ago during a Medical Certificate exam. Told him None of your F**king business and walked out. The next day I got my medical from a Navy Vet Doctor.


10 posted on 02/10/2013 5:19:26 AM PST by eyeamok
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To: 4buttons
We have three kids and thus have visited the pediatrician three times a year for almost fifteen years.

They typically ask the same questions, asked by the nurse, ever time the kids get their annual physical exams.

In addition to questions about nutrition, school performance, sleep habits, any concerns, etc. they always inquire whether a car seat is used, whether we own a trampoline, whether we have pets, use helmets when biking, and in recent years, whether there are guns in the house.

"Any firearms in the house?"

"A gazillion."

"Are they kept securely locked up?"

"You betcha."

I expect that all of these questions are part of what the American Academy of Pediatrics has identified as good practice when conducting office exams. None of the questions bother me and I want my kids to trust and disclose any concerns with their doctors. But, the whole electronic medical record thingy causes me pause.

First rule of gun ownership, from my point of view, is not advertising the fact that we have guns. I don't have 'Protected by S&W' decals on my door and figure the fewer people who know about our guns the better.

I trust our physicians, but I'm skeptical about the security of any sensitive info that could be harvested from the medical record.

11 posted on 02/10/2013 5:21:51 AM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: Flintlock

Possible response:

NO, but I have three hammers, an axe, and many very sharp kitchen knives.


12 posted on 02/10/2013 5:36:14 AM PST by wetgundog (" Extremism in the Defense of Liberty is no Vice")
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To: pepsionice

No guns, do you have a question about rocket launchers and dynamite etc? ;-)


13 posted on 02/10/2013 5:36:52 AM PST by Average Al
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To: 4buttons

I’ll repeat (again) what I’ve said in the past:

If asked by a doctor whether you have guns, you need to give A POLITE NO as your answer. Anything else gets you on another list, that, very easily, can be turned over to the government. (of course your kids have to be trained to say the same)

I also mentioned that the people they are looking for are not the typical mainstream gun owners, the ones that have already had background checks and buy their ammo with credit cards. No, they already have you in their databases.

They are looking, instead, for the people who are under the radar, the ones that buy their guns in untraceable private transactions and pay cash for guns and ammo. Those people are the ones more likely rise up, when the time comes, and they are hard to find. But, I suspect, they will often give themselves away to their doctors by saying something like NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUSINESS. Once they do that, then they are now in the database.

So guys, if you want to fight this, don’t try fighting it in the doctor’s office - since you lose by default - you need to fight it in state legislatures...or simply give A POLITE NO, when asked.


14 posted on 02/10/2013 5:42:25 AM PST by BobL
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To: Average Al

I wonder if they’re going to start asking people if they have a swimming pool?


15 posted on 02/10/2013 5:44:45 AM PST by Oberon (Big Brutha Be Watchin'.)
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To: BobL

Sounds like your kids need to be trained to also give a polite “no” or “I don’t know”. Docs against Glocks think that kids will be more likely to spill the beans to the godlike figure in the white lab coat looming over them.


16 posted on 02/10/2013 5:46:35 AM PST by elcid1970 ("The Second Amendment is more important than Islam.")
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To: Flintlock
Q—Do you have a gun in the home?

A1—”No” (Actually, there’s a dozen)

A2—”...Next question?”

Q—Do you have a gun in the home?

A1- Did you know that nearly ten times as meany people die each year from medical malpractice than from firearms?

17 posted on 02/10/2013 5:51:10 AM PST by Labyrinthos
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To: 4buttons
My doctor in Arkansas.

Do you have a gun in the home?

Me: Do you doc?

Doc: That is a dumb question you know we both take recoil therapy twice a month at the range.

18 posted on 02/10/2013 5:54:20 AM PST by mosaicwolf (Strength and Honor)
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To: 4buttons
Whether or not a physician discusses guns with a patient is beside the point.

NOT beside the point is that whatever is discussed between doctor and patient is CONFIDENTIAL--and has been since before the time of Hippocrites.

19 posted on 02/10/2013 5:55:33 AM PST by Savage Beast (The forces of decadence are the forces of evil.)
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To: 4buttons

Just give gun safety warnings to every parent, without asking of the patient owns any. Problem solved.


20 posted on 02/10/2013 5:55:33 AM PST by Above My Pay Grade
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