sturmruger
Member
My wife works in the medical field. The entire hospital that she works at was forwarded an email urging them to write our state Assembly person. I still can't believe the hospital admin can do this!! I guess all of this is originating out of the Wisconsin Hospital Association. They use some of the most screwed up logic I have ever seen.:banghead:
This is the WHA Position on Carry permits in WI from 2003
From: Liberal Activist
Sent: Wednesday November 23rd
To: All staff
Subject: HEAT Alert! Concealed Carry Exemption Needed!
To all Staff:
As you may know, the Wisconsin legislature is considering new concealed carry legislation. For safety reasons, we are urging them to exempt health care facilities from this legislation
Representative Kitty Rhoades sits on the Joint Finance Committee that will be voting on this bill next Wednesday, and direct communication from you - people who live and/or work in her - is very important. We hope you will take a few minutes to contact Representative Rhoades - by email, mail, or telephone - urge her to support an exemption for health care facilities from the concealed carry legislation.
Kitty Rhoades
Madison, WI
A sample letter is attached; this could be printed, signed and mailed OR cut and pasted into an email. You could also call the toll-free number to leave a message for Representative Rhoades. If you'd prefer, there are a stack of these letters at the front desk of the hospital; feel free to stop by and sign a letter, and I'll take care of getting them in the mail
Thank you for your help with this critical safety issue. If you have any questions please let me know.
Liberal Staffer
This is the WHA Position on Carry permits in WI from 2003
Wisconsin Hospital Association
5721 Odana Rd
P.O. Box 44992 Madison, WI 53744-4992
P (608.274.1820) F (608.274.8554) www.wha.org
In its current form, the Personal Protection Act (Assembly Bill 444 and Senate Bill 214) raises serious
doubts about the safety and security of Wisconsin residents at a time when they are potentially most
vulnerable – when seeking health care for themselves or loved ones. Though unintended, as drafted this
bill could cause more harm than good in Wisconsin’s hospitals.
Hospitals Should Be Off Limits for Concealed Weapons: The legislation recognizes a number of
facilities where carrying a licensed and concealed weapon is not appropriate, including police stations,
sheriff’s offices, state patrol stations, prisons, jails, courthouses, school administration buildings, airports,
taverns, and even large athletic facilities. WHA believes the absence of hospitals from this list is a
significant omission. AB 444/SB 214 should be amended to prohibit carrying concealed weapons into
hospitals.
Hospitals Contain Highly Combustible Materials: Unlike prisons, school administration buildings, or
any of the exempted facilities, highly flammable materials are always being used in hospitals. Oxygen
and other dangerous combustibles are routinely present and in use. Stray bullets, regardless of how well
intended, can easily ignite these materials and result in a catastrophe affecting the lives of every man,
woman and child in the hospital. An individual carrying a permitted concealed weapon who intervenes
when an armed, or unarmed, patient or visitor threatens another person could endanger others. Such a
situation involves dangers and variables that are best handled by hospital security and local law
enforcement. If guns do not belong in The Kohl Center, they certainly do not belong in a hospital.
A Non-Threatening Care Environment: Patients and families often face traumatic or emotionally
devastating situations. Compounding these difficult times by allowing guns in hospitals is both
unnecessary and counterproductive to the mission of a hospital. Patients require an atmosphere of safety
and an environment conducive to healing. Patients and their families will not be put at ease knowing a
food service employee carrying a gun may deliver their dinner or an orderly with a concealed weapon may
transport them for tests and procedures. Nor will they be comforted by the thought that visitors to the
patient next-door may be carrying guns. If guns do not belong in prisons, they do not belong in
hospitals.
If Not in Taverns, Why in Hospitals? An otherwise law-abiding citizen with a substance abuse problem,
or even under the influence of alcohol, might use a legally concealed weapon to demand access to
medications stored in hospitals. Nothing guarantees individuals with permits won’t present a threat,
endanger safety, or possibly exacerbate an already volatile situation in an environment where controlled or
intoxicating substances are present. If guns do not belong in taverns, they certainly do not belong in
hospitals.
Other States Exempt Hospitals: At least five states - Texas, Michigan, South Carolina, Wyoming and
Minnesota - specifically prohibit even those with a license from carrying concealed weapons in hospitals.
Legislation recently passed by both houses in Missouri also includes a hospital exemption. In addition, at
least ten other states with concealed carry laws allow private businesses to prohibit weapons on their
property by posting a notice. WHA urges you to amend AB 444 and SB 214 and prohibit carrying a
concealed weapon in health care facilities or, at the very least, allow facilities to set their own policies.
09/08/03(this was the old position paper, they are too lazy to write a new one for the bill proposed this year.)
2003 – 04 Position Paper
WISCONSIN HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION, INC.
http://www.wha.org/pubArchive/position_statements/ab444concealed9-03.pdf