House Passes Bill Outlawing Genetic Discrimination
May 5th, 2008 • Posted in: NewsMeasure designed to deter growing practice of people avoiding testing due to fears of effects on jobs and insurance
WASHINGTON
The U.S. House of Representatives last week passed a bill that would bar companies from firing, refusing to hire, or otherwise discriminating against workers based on their genetic profiles.
UPI reports that the measure also would apply to group health plans and individual health insurance carriers. Plan administrators would be prohibited from determining eligibility or premiums based on genetic information.
According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, supporters of the bill described it as the first civil rights legislation of the twenty-first century.
“By freeing people from fear of genetic discrimination, we can unlock the tremendous life-saving and cost-saving potential of genetic research,” Rep. Judy Biggert (R-Ill.), one of the chief sponsors of the bill, told the Chronicle. “More Americans will participate in genetic clinical trials, and more Americans will use these technologies to improve their health.”
Language in the bill describes the measure as establishing “a national and uniform basic standard … necessary to fully protect the public from discrimination and allay their concerns about the potential for discrimination, thereby allowing individuals to take advantage of genetic testing, technologies, research, and new therapies,” reports the Jurist.
The Senate previously approved the bill, and President Bush has indicated he will sign it into law, the Chicago Tribune notes.
Some representatives of business and industry have argued that employers have an ethical obligation to test for certain genetic predispositions, contending that the knowledge could prevent, for example, workers with a disposition to cancers caused by certain substances from exposure to those specific toxins.
But critics countered that the net effect of genetic testing was to dissuade the susceptible from taking advantage of the new technology because they feared the information would be abused by employers or insurers.
Sources: Jurist, May 1 — Congressional Quarterly, May 1 — San Francisco Chronicle, May 1 — UPI, May 1.
For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Apr. 7 — Related Newsline story, Feb. 25 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 22 — Related Newsline story, Jan. 14.
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