North Carolina orthodontist offers free gun with Invisalign treatment, causing a stir nationwide
An orthodontist's office in North Carolina has stirred up controversy with its new “Grins and Glocks" promotion, a deal offering guns to patients along with certain dental procedures.
Gladwell Orthodontics, a practice owned by Dr. Jason Gladwell, has begun advertising the inclusion of a free Glock 19 handgun for patients who receive Invisalign treatment in his office.
According to local station WFAB 9, the deal allows Invisalign patients to choose between a free Glock, worth $500, or a membership at the local Youngsville Gun Club & Range. The promotion was originally offered to people already on the club's email list, but it began drawing widespread attention as locals caught wind.
While Dr. Gladwell will be paying for the purchase of the firearms or fire range membership, he will not be providing them directly in compliance with the law. Instead, the gun club owner Kurt Lieberman told local outlets eligible patients will need to be 21 or older and visit the club directly in order to undergo a background check and receive the gun.
“It’s a process. They have to come; they have to have a valid driver’s license. They have to be a legal citizen; they have to be 21 and older. We do a background check here on-site. That has to come back approved. They have to fill out all the paperwork,” Lieberman told local station WRAL.
Recipients of the free gun will also be recommended to take a training class, but it won’t be required to receive their Glock.
While the move is legal, it isn't popular with everyone. Jennifer Copeland, executive director of the NC Council of Churches, told WRAL she was shocked by the move.
“They’re giving away guns that are going to be lodged in a house somewhere, and will potentially create gun violence and gun death,” Copeland told the station. “It’s mind-blowing to me, that an organization that I think of as trying to provide health care to the people in the community is partnering their healthcare with gun death.”
Align Technology, the makers of Invisalign, said in a statement to USA TODAY that Invisalign-trained doctors are independent practices and the company was not aware of or part of developing this promotion.
"For more than 25 years, Align has been helping doctors transform smiles and change lives through healthy beautiful smiles using Invisalign aligners, and this promotion does not reflect our brand purpose," said the company.
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Other companies offering gun giveaways with product purchases
While Gladwell's offer of a free Glock along with the purchase of Invisalign may seem rather unusual, his is not the only business offering guns as part of product promotions.
A business in South Carolina, an HVAC company called Arctic Air, is offering a free AR-15 along with the purchase of a system. The deal is running through 2024, according to the company's social media, and the owner has stated they chose to do the promotion because "it's our legal right."
Florida roofing company ROOF EZ is making a similar offer for the holidays, providing customers a Thanksgiving turkey and an AR-15 to "protect your family" along with the purchase and installation of a new roof.
The companies themselves are not able to sell the guns directly and instead help customers coordinate with a licensed firearms dealer or provide a gift card to the partnering dealer. All of the businesses have said standard background checks and legal processes for gun ownership still apply.
Social media responses on the pages of these businesses have been mixed, with some people insisting the deals are a fair exercise of the right to gun ownership, while others have pointed out the reality of gun violence that plagues the U.S.
According to research published in October of this year by the Statista Research Department, the U.S. averages more than 40,000 deaths from firearms annually, the only high-income country to report such a high death toll from gun violence. As of Oct. 26, there were 11 mass shootings in the United States in 2023, killing more than 600 people according to a Forbes report.
A Pew Research Center study published in September 2023 found that about half (49%) of Americans say gun ownership does more to increase safety by allowing law-abiding citizens to protect themselves, but an equal number say gun ownership does more to reduce safety by giving too many people access to firearms and increasing misuse.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: North Carolina orthodontist offers free gun with Invisalign treatment
