Florida Lawmakers Want Paramedics to Carry Guns on Duty

By Ready to Fire News Last updated Jun 17, 2019

A new law in Florida will allow individuals who are constantly in service to the public to carry firearms in what are deemed to be high-risk situations.

Florida isn’t exactly the state you would expect to hear about having liberal gun laws after the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Fortunately, Governor Ron DeSantis realizes that sometimes paramedics have to follow police officers into situations such as drug raids and hostage situations in order to help protect and provide aid where needed.

This latest measure that he proposed will allow paramedics to have a way to protect themselves when they are doing their jobs.

Currently, paramedics are required to wait at a safe distance during a high-risk situation, but the ability to carry a gun may allow them to go right in and start rendering aid to those who need it. Not only does this provide paramedics with the same privileges as law enforcement professionals during these tense times, but it can also help paramedics protect themselves in a dangerous situation.

Called “tactical medicine” by Sarasota County EMS Chief Carson Sanders, paramedics will also be required to complete a concealed carry permit application, participate in firearm training and also take a refresher class on an annual basis. This additional responsibility is granted only on an as-needed basis, as a paramedic’s first duty is to care for the health and well-being of their patients — not serve as an added gun in the case of a bad situation.

Florida is not the only state that has either implemented or proposed a firearm law for first responders. Tennessee, Mississippi and Virginia have also proposed similar laws, while Kansas and Ohio have already fully implemented this type of legislation.

Florida is on the forefront of the movement to allow trusted individuals to carry firearms for protection, as teachers are now allowed to be armed on campus. This move towards proactively creating an armed state is proof that it’s not the guns that are the problem when it comes to mass shootings. The issue is the instability of individuals who are being pushed into the limelight by the mainstream media to gain their five seconds of infamy for committing their heinous acts.

The legislation, signed by Governor DeSantis, is available for review here. This particular law is a direct response to the Parkland school shooting, and is one of the several recommendations that came out of the Public Safety Commission recommendation, along with the ability for teachers to carry firearms on school property.

While this isn’t a wholesale license for medical personnel to carry weapons, it is a positive step forward that will help protect a broader swath of the American people.