Editorial: Docs vs. Glocks

The NRA faces challenges on a number of fronts in the wake of the Orlando massacre as progressives rush to blame firearms rather than Islamic terror. But a federal lawsuit now playing out in an Atlanta courtroom could also be a setback for the group.

The case stems from a 2011 Florida law that makes it illegal for doctors to ask their patients about guns unless they have legitimate safety concerns. It also prevents doctors from dropping patients because they own weapons. The NRA pushed the measure — the only law of its kind in the country — as necessary to protect the privacy and Second Amendment rights of gun owners.

In fact, it’s an affront to the First Amendment.

The legislation came in response to the fact that many physicians today, during routine medical examinations, often ask questions about firearms. In fact, the AMA — which labels gun violence a national epidemic and public health issue — encourages doctors to inquire with patients about guns in the home and related matters. Other medical organizations offer similar advice.

Doctors and medical groups sued to block the law’s implementation and in 2012 a federal judge declared the statute unconstitutional. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later voted 2-1 to toss out that decision, ruling that Florida had an interest in ensuring doctors don’t use their “power disparity” to discourage patients from owning firearms.

The matter is now before the full 11th Circuit, which heard arguments this week.

The issue here isn’t gun ownership or the right to bear arms enshrined in the Bill of Rights. It’s whether the state has any business regulating private communications between doctors and those in their care.

Many people may indeed find it offensive to be asked during an annual physical if they keep a gun in house, whether it’s under lock and key or if it’s loaded. That’s understandable. But patients who find this intrusive can simply decline to answer, tell their physician to mind his own business or find a new doctor.

Legislation is overkill. Silencing discourse in either direction is unnecessary and a bad idea.