Ineresting discussion-- Depression treatment and firearms

[jfcrail]

I was recently talking with an old friend about a mutual friend of ours that had committed suicide last year. It was one of those "he never seemed depressed" kind of talks. We both wondered if he hid his illness and refused to seek treatment because of the fear of losing his firearms or just plain feeling embarrassed etc.

He was an avid outdoorsman to say the least. The guy had 5 weeks vacation weeks per year----4 of them were used in deer season!

The talk turned into us pondering & wondering what the laws regarding depression/mental health treatment and firearms ownership are all about. Obviously it must vary some by state.

 

[RamRoddoc]

If a patient/person is not a threat to themselves or the public then outpatient treatment is available and many insurance carriers cover this to some degree. Self referred or from a friend/relative or health care provider is common place.

However, if a patient is considered an immediate threat to self or public they can be detained/restrained and placed in a medical facility until it is determined the threat has ceased. Being an inpatient by force affects your rights as it pertains to specifically firearms rights. California is funding the program to screen all those with registered firearms and if (ever) they have had any mental illness that they decide is in conflict with allowing the individual to possess or retain firearms then they will go get them. How? It's not clear but I'd hope that a case worker showed up first, rather than a swat team locked and loaded.

New York is blazing ground as well and through state records and I'm not sure which ones as HIPPA laws are in place for privacy and are a hindrance to the state in this type of endeavor. I suspect the drug records that the state tracks, who is taking SSRI's etc. and who pops above the radar for whatever criteria that they the state deem are a trigger to deny gun rights to citizens. No judge nor jury.

It's worrisome from several angles but most importantly the one that would make a person refuse to seek care due to the threat of loss of rights. The history for these types of public policies have never came to much good and on the contrary have a record of making the issues worse by preventing treatment.

The issue with suicide and as it relates to guns; is that a person who is intent on suicide will do so by whatever method is available. Guns don't cause suicide. Depression and mental heath conditions do. It's a fact ignored by those who claim and profess the dangers of having a gun as many of the gun violence death "numbers" are in fact suicides at home. But not having a gun would not have stopped them. Nor would merely having a gun cause them to commit suicide.

I'm sorry for your loss. He sounds like he was a good man.

Here is more information from GA Carry:

Link: http://www.georgiacarry.org/cms/georgias-carry-laws-explained/frequently-asked-questions/

Q: I’m just curious to know if the prescription drug Paxil or Xanex would prevent a person from getting a Georgia Weapons License?
A: No, it should not prevent you from obtaining a license. The only portion of the statute (16-11-129) even loosely pertaining to such issues is the subsection on inpatient treatment for mental health or alcohol or drug treatment. This subsection is more restrictive than federal law, but it does not address any outpatient treatment.

(J) Any person who has been hospitalized as an inpatient in any mental hospital or alcohol or drug treatment center within the five years immediately preceding the application. The judge of the probate court may require any applicant to sign a waiver authorizing any mental hospital or treatment center to inform the judge whether or not the applicant has been an inpatient in any such facility in the last five years and authorizing the superintendent of such facility to make to the judge a recommendation regarding whether the applicant is a threat to the safety of others and whether a license to carry a weapon should be issued. When such a waiver is required by the judge, the applicant shall pay a fee of $3.00 for reimbursement of the cost of making such a report by the mental health hospital, alcohol or drug treatment center, or the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, which the judge shall remit to the hospital, center, or department. The judge shall keep any such hospitalization or treatment information confidential. It shall be at the discretion of the judge, considering the circumstances surrounding the hospitalization and the recommendation of the superintendent of the hospital or treatment center where the individual was a patient, to issue the weapons carry license or renewal license.