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CommonHealth: Boston-Based Dr. Murthy Faces NRA's Obstacles
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Congress has blocked or delayed many of the Obama administration's judicial nominees, but the president's nominee for surgeon general — Boston-based Dr. Vivek Murthy — is facing an even bigger obstacle: the lobbying power of the National Rifle Association. It's because of Dr. Murthy's previously stated views on gun control, and the medical community in Boston is alarmed at how politics is colliding with public health policy.
Guests
Carey Goldberg, co-host of WBUR's CommonHealth blog. She tweets at @commonhealth.
Dr. Robert Sege, director of Boston Medical Center's division of family and child advocacy. He tweets at @Kiddrbob.
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CommonHealth: Gun Laws: A New Litmus Test For Surgeon General?
- "Abortion has been a litmus test for U.S. Supreme Court nominees since the hearings for Robert Bork 27 years ago. Now, some doctors are worried that anything a physician says about guns may prove perilous for nominees to be U.S. surgeon general. Will Dr. Vivek Murthy, an internist at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital, set the precedent?"
The Washington Post: Vivek Murthy, The NRA And The Politics Of Fear
- "Murthy is widely respected as a physician, a public health expert and an all-around good guy. And like many doctors, he has decried the toll guns take on public health, with around 30,000 gun deaths and 80,000 nonfatal gun injuries in America every year. For that, Murthy must be made an example of."
This segment aired on March 24, 2014.