House Subcommittee Considers Bill That Would Prohibit Genetic Discrimination

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House Subcommittee Considers Bill That Would Prohibit Genetic

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=64905

The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health on Thursday

held a hearing on legislation (HR 493) to ban discrimination against

U.S. residents based on the results of genetic tests, CQ HealthBeat

reports. Health Subcommittee Chair Pallone (D-N.J.) said that

some individuals might forgo participation in genetic testing " out

of concern for possible repercussions, therefore losing the

opportunity to receive monitoring and preventive care for conditions

in which they are at higher risk. " He noted that many states have

laws banning genetic discrimination, but because they vary widely, a

federal standard is needed. Burton Fishman of the Genetic

Information Nondiscrimination in Employment Coalition at the hearing

said, " The law should not trigger liability based on an employer's

mere receipt of genetic information, such as through conversation

concerning a relative's illness or derived from such normative

behavior as visiting the sick and consoling the bereaved. " Francis

, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at

NIH said, " This is an issue of equity. This is an issue of justice. "

Corwin -- medical director of clinical policy at Harvard

Pilgrim Health Care who testified on behalf of America's Health

Insurance Plans -- said the bill as drafted might limit health plans

from using genetic tests to promote preventive screening and disease

management programs (Carey, CQ HealthBeat, 3/8).