Physician gag rules in gun legislation prevent physicians from discussing health issues related to gun ownership with patients, especially parents of children.
When the tension between solidarity and individualism hardens into entrenched oppositional politics, attempts to widen health care coverage are stymied.
Jodi Halpern, MD, PhD and Richard L. Kravitz, MD, MSPH
Just as people frequently support political parties without endorsing their entire platforms, perhaps physicians can support a health care advocacy organization without agreeing with its screening guidelines.
AMA Journal of Ethics editor Audiey Kao, MD, PhD, interviewed Richard Pan, MD, MPH, about how, as a physician and legislator, he seeks to protect public health in light of recurrent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable infectious diseases.
Physicians will have a greater impact on health if they advocate for changes needed to prevent illness and harm than if they simply patch up those who are sick or harmed.