New executive orders link health records, mental illness to gun ownership
The Obama Administration announced two new executive orders on gun control
According to one of the proposed actions is to allow increased government access to mental health records. Currently required to protect that information, states would now be exempt, instead encouraged to submit a patient’s private records into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
A second proposal from the Department of Justice would “clarify” who is barred from owning firearms, which would include anyone involuntarily committed to an inpatient or outpatient mental institution.
In an attempt to diminish concern, the administration claims that seeking help for mental issues does not prohibit a person from firearm ownership.
“The proposed rule will not change the fact that seeking help for mental health problems or getting treatment does not make someone legally prohibited from having a firearm,” the statement said.
Critics say this targets returning military vets, preventing them from owning a firearm.
A collaborative study from 2007 between the VA Medical Center and the Archives of Internal Medicine claimed that at least 1/3rd of returning veterans were mentally ill.
President Obama proposed 23 executive actions on gun control as well, pushing healthcare providers to ask their patients whether they own firearms.
Critics point to the stats, noting how gun homicide is seeing a 49 percent drop since 1993, saying the government has continued to ignore facts with its attempt to push gun control.
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