Annual check up question; "Do you have firearms at home"?

[shurshot]

I scheduled a check up at my Primary care Dr.'s and was sent a form to fill out, asking about moles, smoking, stool size, joint pain, etc. And question #H (Under "Prevention"), is "Do you have firearms at home"? For real?????

Now granted, this falls after questions pertaining to seat belts, smoke detectors, annual cholesterol checks, etc., but honestly, I feel more violated with this question than when he tells me to "bend over and spread 'em"! I guess that due to suicide rates of males, this question is on the form (MP10 effective 04/2005). I don't want to lie to my Doctor, but I do not want my insurance company to use my gun ownership against me and raise my rates in the future either. Does anyone else get questioned on gun ownership? I can see if a Dr. is concerned about depression or suicide and considering giving out controlled substances, but for a healthy guy to get grilled about my guns, the red flags go up.

[shortwave]

I simply don't answer these kind of non-pertinent questions and have yet to be called on them.

[LeopardCurDog]

Don't lie, just them it is none of their damn business.

[a7mmnut]

A similar question seemingly most asked in NC is "Do you feel safe at home?" If you simply answer "yes", they move on to the next family life question. If the answer is "no", then a new line of questions is asked, and will most probably contact the appropriate local agencies (Department of Social Services, Family Welfare, Mental Health, etc.)--as is now required by law.

-7-

[DFrame]

My doctor shoots cowboy action. We invariably end up talking guns and reloading whenever I'm in his office. But NO I would NEVER answer such a question on a form.

[huntinaz]

I wouldn't answer that crap. It's none of their business and has zero bearing on how a doctor assesses you health.

I scheduled a check up at my Primary care Dr.'s and was sent a form to fill out, asking about moles, smoking, stool size, joint pain, etc.

However, I would maybe have a little fun with this

[Webleymkv]

What state do you live in? I ask because these kinds of questions can vary from state to state or even from one institution to another. I'm currently a nursing student in Indiana and the only time I've ever seen the issue of firearms brought up in a health screening is in pediatrics, and then only so that education about safe firearms storage can be delivered as needed.

[Boatme98]

This again. You aren't applying for a security clearance. You don't have to answer any question you don't want to.
Where I live though, if you don't answer that one, the doc usually asks what you carry. Next thing you know, you've got a shooting buddy.

[medalguy]

My experience too. I went to my internist last year for my annual, and the questionnaire asked about firearms in the house. I wrote MYOB.

In the exam room the doc was reading all the answers, and when he got to the gun question, he just smiled and looked up at me and said "I don't blame you." Turns out the question was put in there by the group he practices with, he didn't really care at all.

[mete]

That still going on ? There is a group of anti-gun who has been using their position as doctors to further their anti-gun agenda.

[Flopsweat]

There was a whole section of questions not related to health on my last one - smoke detectors, seatbelts, guns, etc. I just crossed that section out. I'm very tempted to leave the entire form blank if it happens again.

[Aguila Blanca]

Originally Posted by Webleymkv

What state do you live in? I ask because these kinds of questions can vary from state to state or even from one institution to another. I'm currently a nursing student in Indiana and the only time I've ever seen the issue of firearms brought up in a health screening is in pediatrics, and then only so that education about safe firearms storage can be delivered as needed.

The AMA is very anti-gun, and the pediatrticians among them (I think it's called the American College of Pediatricians) is virulently anti-gun. It's fine for you to claim (or for them to tell you in nursing school) that this is "only so that education about safe firearms storage can be delivered as needed," but the information still gets entered in your family's records. Then the government and the insurers get access to those records as Obamacare extends its tentacles, and now your private business is the government's public business.

Plus ... who is going to deliver this "education about safe firearms storage"? A pediatrician? What are his/her qualifications to be teaching anything related to firearms safety? If he/she is not an NRA-certified firearms instructor (or equivalent), he/she has no business presuming to educate anyone about firearms safety. This would then be what is known as a boundary violation -- engaging in a practice for which the practitioner is unqualified. If I were to start charging money for dispensing legal advice for a fee, I would be charged with practicing law without a license. Ditto if I were to start giving medical advice. So why do doctors, especially pediatricians, think it's okay for them to start handing out advice that I have taken training to be certified in providing?

These forms are not signed under oath, so this is one place where I think it is acceptable to lie. The problem with declining to answer is that you have no control over how the doctor interprets that, or what he/she enters in your record as a reaction to that.

Also, for those with kids, NEVER allow a pediatrician to be in an exam room alone with your kid. Be sure you or your spouse is always present, and be sure your kids are taught never EVER to tell anyone there are guns in the house. If you aren't comfortable explaining to them why it's okay to lie about this, they should be taught to just say, "I don't know, ask my Mommy and my Daddy."

THESE QUESTIONS ARE NOT BENIGN.

[shurshot]

I'm in Southern Maine. We are a very pro-gun ownership State, compared to MA, NY, NJ, or Conn. But our demographics are changing... the yuppies are taking over. You know the kind. Kind hearted, nice people, but they would prefer to let a woodchuck destroy their garden, instead of just shooting it with a .22, as they dislike guns and think a woodchuck has as much right to live as you or I. This is why I asked to see if anyone else in other parts of the US was being asked about gun ownership by medical staff.

[Nickel Plated]

Don't lie, just them it is none of their damn business.

My experience too. I went to my internist last year for my annual, and the questionnaire asked about firearms in the house. I wrote MYOB.

So basically you all answered "yes"

If your intention is to keep your firearms ownership a private matter then getting all defensive about it as soon as the question is brought up is really not the way to do it.

Just put a check under "no" and move on with your life. What's the doctor gonna do? Come to your house to make sure?

[shortwave]

THESE QUESTIONS ARE NOT BENIGN.

No they are not...and are as offensive to me as if there was a question on there about my financial business, personal relationship or what I do in my spare time.

Again, I just don't answer them and could care less how the Doc's staff interprets that.

The Doc's office is not the only place that tries to overstep their boundaries when it comes to gathering voluntary, non-relevant , personal information.

Seems as though the mailbox is always full of junk mail questionnaires requesting personal info. Too, I renewed my Lowe's credit card the other day and was asked over the phone by the credit card company(which is separate from Lowe's) what seemed to be a standardized, form type of questions concerning my personal activities.
After a few questions, I politely told the credit card rep. that I wasn't interested in taking their survey. The questions ended, card renewed and I was off the phone quickly.

Bottom-line is, I just don't give info out on myself voluntarily and many of the questions on these different forms are designed to do just that...get you to voluntarily give up personal information about yourself.

Learn to 'Just say NO' to answering them.

[zincwarrior]

Mayhaps more relevantly, if you answer "incorrectly" your insurance could go up when they get hold of the information.

[drail]

The correct answer is " I can't remember".

[Double Naught Spy]

Now granted, this falls after questions pertaining to seat belts, smoke detectors, annual cholesterol checks, etc., but honestly, I feel more violated with this question than when he tells me to "bend over and spread 'em"! I guess that due to suicide rates of males, this question is on the form (MP10 effective 04/2005). I don't want to lie to my Doctor, but I do not want my insurance company to use my gun ownership against me and raise my rates in the future either. Does anyone else get questioned on gun ownership? I can see if a Dr. is concerned about depression or suicide and considering giving out controlled substances, but for a healthy guy to get grilled about my guns, the red flags go up.

It is an interesting conundrum between those who will fight for 2A rights, sing to everyone on the internet about how they own guns that they own and those who want to keep their gun ownership secret and not pay the insurance companies the premium the insurance companies might want to charge for such.

Why is telling those we pay to help us such a secret when we will tell everyone else about our guns? If it is such a secret, why do we broadcast our secret in a manner that can be traced readily?

If you have a problem with paying your insurance company the $ it charges by failure to disclose information, you can get into trouble if you file a firearms-related claim and then fight out they aren't paying. Find another insurance company.

No, the questions are not benign. I will grant you that, but at least for the insurance company, there certainly can be some very real business (claims payment) issues that arise. If you don't want your insurance company to know, then no problem if you never have a problem, but you may have a real problem trying to get a settlement when you fail to disclose and this transgreassion is undoubtedly covered in your fine print. Go back and reread ALL your insurance paperwork.

Since you feel so violated, what did the doctor say? Surely if this troubled you so much to broadcast it here, you spoke with the offending doctor and asking him what happens with all the various information he gathers, how he uses it to treat you, etc. So what did he say?

What do you think of all the other threads we have had on this matter? You read those as well while researching on your violation?

[Botswana]

I've heard a couple of stories now, though they are second-hand so take with the appropriate grain of salt, of people answering that question and getting a stern lecture from their doctor.

In one case I think it was a pediatrician who upon seeing that the parents owned a firearm told them how dangerous it was to own a gun with children in the house and they should remove it.

In another case it was a general practicioner who gave the patient a lecture about adopting a safer lifestyle by getting rid of any firearms they own.

My personal opinion is that anything not directly related to my health is none of their business. I get why a doctor needs to know if you're a smoker or if you eat Big Macs for breakfast. My financial situation, how fast I drive, guns I own, etc. are of no concern until there is a direct correlation. In other words, my job might become pertinent if I'm showing a risk of heart attack due to stress.

The most dangerous thing I do is my ridiculous commute everyday to work. Unfortunately, that's not a lifestyle choice I can easily undo. Stastically it is far more dangerous then any firearm I can own.

[shurshot]

DoubleNaughtSpy; Take some fiber with your coffee and chill out. I'm not looking for a fight, I just thought it was an odd question to have on a medical survey, and took offense to it, given the ongoing attacks against gun ownership. I haven't gone to the appointment yet or spoken to the Dr. I have a busy life with a FT career, family, chores, etc. and don't spend all my time on here running up my post count or researching past threads. Perhaps I should have prior to posting. My bad.
If I had known you would get so worked up, I wouldn't have typed it. I sure hope your fiber kicks in...

Time to close the thread?

[Salmoneye]

My Doctor's property adjoins mine and I mow the office lawn on the weekends for extra cash...

I also shoot deer and rabbits behind/between our places, and ducks in his pond...I bring him oven ready game quite often in the Fall...

I think he might suspect I have 'a' gun...

[g.willikers]

I only answer questions that are pertinent to the reason for going to the doctor.
All others get a N.A.
Nobody seems to care.
It's just paper pushing.

[zincwarrior]

I only answer questions that are pertinent to the reason for going to the doctor.
All others get a N.A.
Nobody seems to care.
It's just paper pushing.

Its not actually. medical records are now being centralized IIRC. All those questions (this is not 2nd Amendment specific) could potentially be held against you in some further time by insurance companies, employers, who knows? Once data enters the electronic world it never goes away.


"N.A." is the best course.

[shortwave]

All those questions (this is not 2nd Amendment specific) could potentially be held against you in some further time by insurance companies, employers, who knows? Once data enters the electronic world it never goes away.

Like to add future potential employers to the list as well.

Who would have thunk that 'facebook' (again, all voluntary information) would be reviewed by possible potential employers one might have applied for a job with. It's done everyday.

Too, on some of the voluntary info. forms we fill out, the information is sold/traded to various marketing company's.

Not sure if these certain forms at Dr's office fall under this category. I surely wouldn't take for granted that everything I filled out/signed at a Dr's. office fell under the 'patient/physician confidentiality policy'...IT DOESN'T.

[berettaprofessor]

The correct answer is " I can't remember".

Not using that one..."I can't remember" at my age will get me a complete mental health evaluation.....