Worcester doctors lead push to target gun 'gag laws'

Only time I've ever been asked is about 11-12 years ago, when I was living in northern NH. I was seeing a doctor at the Concord, NH hospital. She asked if I had firearms in the house, to which I answered...I live alone up in the woods, have coyotes and bears come into my yard on a regular basis, of course I've got firearms. She just shook her head like, yeah that makes sense.
 
I have a friend of mine (no... seriously, lol) that thought he was doing himself a favor by being honest with his doctor about what and how much he drank... thought the doc should know, in case it affected his health care.

Then he applied for life insurance.

If you think your information is private, suit yourself. Me? I pay cash for my beer-

This is a great point. Anything you tell your doctor will be recorded. When applying for life insurance, the life insurance companies sends a letter to your doctor asking for your file. You can and will be denied/rated for what you have told your doctor.

Years ago, a friend of mine signed up for life insurance through a friend who was a new insurance agent when she was 23. She had second thoughts about getting the life insurance and rather than calling her friend and cancelling the application, she told the phone interviewer that she was sometimes suicidal. It's a standard life insurance question. Needless to say, she was denied. What she didn't consider was that now she is FOREVER barred from life insurance. She tried now that she's in her 40s with kids to get it, and NO GO for her.

(you also have to be careful about getting an anti-depressant drug for quitting smoking. I can tell you a few horror stories about that)

For cripes sake people, don't talk to anyone. Ever. About anything. Nothing good can ever come from it.
 
I said something similar one time. "Do you feel safe at home?" Paused on answering, got the doc to look up, "If I don't say yes, my wife will kill me". Took about 10 seconds to realize I was busting his chops; the nurse figured it out right away.

As long as the lie is not health related...

My doc asked me if I smoke, I said "Only when I'm on fire." I got the weirdest look.... [rofl]

I have a *very* strange sense of humor. Sometimes it's somewhere in between "black" and "morbid". I guess it doesn't always go over. [sad]
 
It won't be long before insurance companies reduce payments to doctors who have not furnished the (.gov) required questionnaires. The medical community may have designed the forms, but you can bet they had "guidance" from the Government. Especially now, with the (un) Affordable Healthcare Act.

and we have BINGO here!!!!!
 
Here's what we do, my fellow rebels;
We post their names loud and proud, everywhere,.
We cease going to them,
We find real, non-political doctors to go to.
How long you think before they get the message?
Solved.
 
^sounds like a good plan. Not to mention, these medical community is shooting itself in the foot by getting involved in this type of inquiry. Who the hell will want to go see a doctor while knowing what's at srake
 
You are confusing the Doctor asking the question when it is the Insurance Company actually doing the asking. Contrary to what SCOTUS says, I don't believe that insurance companies have the right to free speech nor the right to any and all information about my private person.

That doctor may ask any question he wants of a person on the street on his own time but when he steps into that office, he is my doctor not his own person. In that capacity he does not have the right to free speech. He has the obligation to provide medical service and fulfill his oath to do no harm.

Mining data for insurance companies is not in my best interest (it is in the interest of his bank account but I don't give a sht about that).

No, you're confusing what we were talking about. I was not talking about insurance companies. I was talking about so-called "gag laws". These laws prevent people from asking questions. Regardless of profession or situation, you agree with a law that states a person cannot ask a question?
 
Here's what we do, my fellow rebels;
We post their names loud and proud, everywhere,.
We cease going to them,
We find real, non-political doctors to go to.
How long you think before they get the message?
Solved.

Never. The number of gun owners in this state is small. The number that care about this is infinitesimally small.

Maybe other doctors work differently, but my doctor glances at the form, we talk about any issues that I want to discuss, the form goes in the waste basket. I don't think any of this goes into any secret database. Just as they ask if you wear your seat belt, smoke, wear a bike helmet, feel safe in your home, have multiple sex partners...

It's all public health crap that they are supposed to ask you about during your primary care visits.

Feel free to adjust your tinfoil hats and carry on.
 
Here's what we do, my fellow rebels;
We post their names loud and proud, everywhere,.
We cease going to them,
We find real, non-political doctors to go to.
How long you think before they get the message?
Solved.


Not that easy...we don't control the purse strings. Not too many "free clinics" around here anymore. You need to go to Africa. Of course, if you offered cash, you could probably forego the questioning.
 
I say file a report about your doctor to his or her medical board about "boundary violations". THAT supposedly gets their attention quickly.


How about just say "ill talk about my guns if you let me do a rectal exam on you"

Before I tell you about my habits, please tell me what steps you have taken to prevent misdiagnosis, the third leading cause of death in the United States.

Here's what we do, my fellow rebels;
We post their names loud and proud, everywhere,.
We cease going to them,
We find real, non-political doctors to go to.
How long you think before they get the message?
Solved.

I LOVE this place!


Never. The number of gun owners in this state is small. The number that care about this is infinitesimally small. ...

Look what those small numbers did with the whole billboard thing.
 
When I have an appointment with a Doctor and I don't want to answer his questions.I'll stop him and ask if he graduated in the top half of his class.Then ask the big question"Do you know what they call a Doctor who finished at the bottom of his class."After he gives me his funny look i'll give him the answer…Doctor!! End of dumb questions for another visit!
 
That is not a total solution, as "patient refused to answer question" is your medical file may be construed as a probable yes.
"We do not discuss such matters" was the answer given to a nosy paparazzi by a Secret Service spokesman when the pap asked questions about the armor thickness on the Presidential limousine and what it could/could not defeat. Very simple answer and very brilliant! Works for the USSS, should work for the rest of us as well.
 
If the question is "do you have A gun in the home?"

i can safely answer "no" as I have many guns in the home. And many guns is not A gun. lmao.....
 
I don't think any of this goes into any secret database. Just as they ask if you wear your seat belt, smoke, wear a bike helmet, feel safe in your home, have multiple sex partners...

It's all public health crap that they are supposed to ask you about during your primary care visits.

Feel free to adjust your tinfoil hats and carry on.

Question are asked for reasons.

You are asked to write them down or for the doctor to collect the data.

Even if the md does not want to, they are expected or encouraged to collect some percentage of this data.

The insurance companies already assess smokers additional fees every month for being a smoker. I fully expect that other "risky behaviors" will soon see similar monthly surcharges..
 
I was at UMass hospital the other day. I was thinking I'd call up that Dr. Hirsch, and ask him some obscure question, and if he had any malpractice cases lately. Maybe he'd like to turn in a scalpel or two, to get them "off the street".
 
Soon as you see the line "Dr. Hirsh said _____", you can basically just ignore the rest of the post/thread, hit the "reply to thread" button, go to the icons and hit [puke]and move to the next thread. Like when Martha Coakley used to unparse her wrinkled lips to prepare to speak (you'd see her mustache move). You just KNEW what was coming.

(No offense, OP. +1 )
 
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