Insurers Refuse To Cover Kansas Schools Where Teachers Carry Guns

In the wake of the Newtown, Massachusetts, school massacre, many on the far right - including many Neanderthal members of the Virginia GOP - rushed to allow teachers and school personnel to carry guns at school.  It's typical of the mentality of the God, guns and gays crowd who care nothing for all of the statistical data that demonstrates that the presence of guns INCREASES the likelihood of gun violence.  In what really is no surprise, insurance carriers DO pay attention to such data and  schools in Kansas where guns are allowed are receiving a reality check: insurance companies are refusing to insure them.  Why?  Because having lots on guns on the school premises is too dangerous and poses too much of a liability danger.  Think Progress looks at this almost humorous example of the far right cretins getting a slap in the face with reality.  Here are highlights:

In the wake of the Newtown massacre, several states passed laws to allow school officials to carry firearms on campus, arguing that more guns would keep students safe. Insurance companies apparently disagree now that these laws are beginning to take effect. In Kansas, where the law kicked in July 1, major insurers have deemed the new policy too risky and are refusing to cover schools that arm their employees.

Des Moines-based EMC Insurance, which covers 85 to 90 percent of Kansas school districts, has a longstanding policy of denying coverage to schools that arm employees, and they seem unlikely to change it to accommodate Kansas’ new law. Two smaller insurance firms that cover the remaining 10 percent of Kansas schools are also adopting the same policy. Insurers say the risk of giving guns to anyone but law enforcement in a building full of children would make a school’s coverage much more expensive.

“We’ve been writing school business for almost 40 years, and one of the underwriting guidelines we follow for schools is that any on-site armed security should be provided by uniformed, qualified law enforcement officers,” EMC executive Mick Lovell told USA Today.

A week after the Newtown shooting in December, the National Rifle Association pushed for more guns in schools, arguing that “gun-free zones” attract killers. However, as the insurers recognize, arming teachers and custodians poses a far greater danger. Nor do more weapons do much to stop gunmen from doing harm; Columbine High School, the site of one of the most deadly shootings in U.S. history, had an armed guard. Most gunmen wreak havoc in just a few minutes, which would require an armed staffer to have a lightning-fast response time to disarm the shooter. Indeed, even gun shows require aficionados to check their weapons at the door for safety reasons.