Florida Bill Outlaws Asking Patients About Guns
by Emily P. Walker, Washington Correspondent, MedPage TodayReviewed by
May 09, 2011
WASHINGTON -- The Florida state legislature has passed a bill that would make it illegal for pediatricians and other physicians to ask patients or their parents whether they have guns in their home.

Pediatricians often ask the question at initial well-child visits as a platform to discuss how to safely store guns in the home in order to prevent accidental shootings.

But under the law -- expected to be signed soon by Florida's governor -- doctors would face a $500 fine for inquiring about gun ownership and recording it in a patient's medical record. That fine would increase if a physician asked about guns at more than one visit.

The National Rifle Association (NRA), the main backer of the legislation, says questions about firearms don't belong in the doctor's office.

The association also charges that the American Academy of Pediatrics is pushing an anti-gun agenda and that such questions in a medical setting infringe on patients' Second Amendment rights.

"The NRA is way off base by saying we're trying to interfere with their Second Amendment rights; they're interfering with our First Amendment rights," Louis St. Petery, a pediatrician in Florida, told MedPage Today.

"Forty percent of households have guns, so we routinely ask, 'Is there a gun in the home?'" said St. Petery, who is executive vice president of the Florida Pediatric Society. "We want to be sure the parent understands how to safely store that gun so children don't get injured or killed."

He said asking about guns is just part of a litany of questions for new patients aimed at reducing risks for preventable disease and accidents. He also inquires whether his patients have had their necessary vaccinations, whether they have a swimming pool, and whether they wear seat belts.

Although many pediatricians ask that same question about gun ownership -- which is, in fact, recommended by the AAP -- St. Petery's motivation is personal. Early in his career a 5-year-old patient found a loaded handgun at home and killed a 2-year-old sibling.

It was the first funeral of a patient St. Petery and his wife, who is also a pediatrician, ever went to and it left a "tremendous impression" on them, he said.

"Parents who choose to have weapons need to be sure they are properly stored," he said, adding that unlocked guns are not just a danger for young children, but also for adolescents who have emotional issues and may be considering suicide.

St. Petery said that in his 35 years of practice, he's never had patient who seemed annoyed or angry when he asked whether they owned a gun.

The Florida bill originally would have made it a felony for doctors to inquire about gun ownership, punishable by up to a $5 million fine or prison time. But a compromise with the Florida Medical Association lowered the charge and also allows doctors to ask about guns if they fear their patient is in immediate danger.

St. Petery doesn't like that compromise and said doctors could still be reported to the state medical society and have to hire a lawyer to fight the charges.

Marion Hammer, a Florida-based NRA lobbyist and former president of the powerful gun-rights group, said physicians have no right to ask about gun ownership.

"We take our children to pediatricians for medical care, not political judgement or to be harassed by people who have a different agenda other than medical care," she told MedPage Today.

"It's all politics," she said, adding that the AAP advocates banning guns.

PolitiFact recently fact-checked that statement and determined that Hammer's claim is "mostly true." The AAP has policy statements on its website in support of banning handguns and assault weapons, but the group doesn't explicitly advocate a complete ban on guns.

Various materials on the AAP's site advocate gun safety along with a number of other safety tips, such as making sure kids wear bicycle helmets and not placing an infant in front of an airbag.

St. Petery denied that he or the AAP advocates inquiring about gun ownership as part of a larger political agenda to overturn the Second Amendment.

He said he's not anti-gun. In fact, he and his wife own an old shotgun that they keep unloaded and locked up.

Hammer said she has no problem with doctors passing out gun safety information to all patients, say in the form of a pamphlet in the waiting room, but she hopes the bill will deter doctors from asking about guns during office visits.

"I hope that if they are seriously interested in safety, they will disseminate safety information to all patients," she said. "And that they will stop asking questions they have no business asking."

Florida's legislature is the first to approve such the measure, but a similar one is being considered in other states, including North Carolina and Alabama, according to NPR.