Another “Red Flag” category of legislation has surfaced on April 20,
2023. This one is written as an amendment to House Bill 768 by
Representative John Ragan and Senate Bill 522 by Senator Frank Nicely
At this time, we have no information to indicate that either of these
sponsors are cooperating with the proposed amendment or even willing to
consider it. (
Text of the amendment is on the TFA news post).
This bill comes from a different angle. What it
seeks to do is to create a new class of prohibited persons in Tennessee
who will loose their 2nd Amendment rights, perhaps permanently, based
solely on whether the individual is taking one of ten (10) specifically
listed prescription drugs. The drugs listed in the legislation are:
(1) Citalopram;
(2) Fluvoxamine;
(3) Paroxetine;
(4) Fluoxetine;
(5) Sertraline;
(6) Venlafaxine;
(7) Mirtazapine;
(8) Nefazodone;
(9) Bupropion; and
(10) Escitalopram.
As written, the proposed amendment would require that the individual
receiving a prescription for one of these drugs would have to sign an
acknowledgement that the person:
(A) Understands and agrees to be barred from the purchase of a firearm for at least the duration of the treatment regimen; and
(B)
Understands and agrees that information concerning the prescription
will be shared with the
Tennessee bureau of investigation and that the
patient waives the patient’s non-disclosure rights under the federal
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) (42
U.S.C. § 1320d et seq.) and other federal and state confidentiality laws
for purposes of sharing information concerning the prescription with
the Tennessee bureau of investigation.
The proposed legislation would require that the Tennessee Bureau of
Investigation create a database of people who are taking these
medications and that anyone attempting to purchase a firearm from a
federally licensed dealer would be denied by TBI when the background
check is performed.
There is nothing in the legislation to
indicate that it takes any into any consideration whether the person is a
risk of harm to themselves or others because of being prescribed the
mediation. There is nothing in the legislation that addresses whether
the medication is being used in different doses or for “off-label”
purposes. There is simply nothing in the legislation to suggest that
there is any material or scientific basis for this proposal.
