September 15, 2011

US District Judge Marcia G. Cooke (Southern District of Florida-Miami) granted a preliminary injunction yesterday, immediately blocking the enforcement of the new Florida law that bars healthcare professionals from counseling patients about firearms safety. The federal district court will now have to decide whether there is enough evidence to support a permanent injunction blocking the enforcement of the law.

The Florida chapters of the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American College of Physicians, along with 6 individual physicians, filed documents in June asking the US District Court of the Southern District of Florida-Miami, to issue an injunction against the law because it substantially curtailed their First Amendment rights to exchange information with patients about gun safety.

Lisa A. Cosgrove, MD, FAAP, President of the Florida Pediatric Society said: “Pediatricians simply want to do what they do best: protect children. We hope that now we will be able to get back to the business of asking parents to keep their guns, pools and poisons where they can't harm kids."

For more information about the Florida lawsuit restricting physician counseling on firearms safety, please see the following documents posted on aap.org:

Legal Complaint

Order Granting Preliminary Injunction

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.