Florida law barring gun inquiries by doctors upheld by federal appeals court

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Christian Science Monitor:

A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a Florida law that seeks to bar doctors from discussing firearms safety with their patients – including inquiring whether they keep any guns at home.

 

The action reversed a 2012 injunction issued by a federal judge in Miami, who ruled that the Florida law violated the free-speech rights of physicians to counsel their patients about health-related matters.

 

The appeals court panel voted 2 to 1 to uphold the Florida law.

 

The measure, the Firearm Owners’ Privacy Act, was passed in 2011 in response to an American Medical Association policy that encouraged doctors to inquire about the presence of firearms in homes with children. The AMA policy was designed to help raise awareness and protect children from gun-related accidents.