Genetics And Public Policy Center Provides GINA Resources

August 14, 2008

Years of effort on the part of activists, members of Congress, and

their staff members culminated in passage of the Genetic Information

Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) on May 21, 2008. " After a very long

wait, Americans can now be confident that their genetic information

cannot be used by health insurers or employers in harmful or hurtful

ways, " said Center Director Kathy Hudson in a statement on the bill's

passage through the Senate. " Our challenge now is to make sure that

doctors and patients are aware of these new protections so that fear

of discrimination never again stands in the way of a decision to take

a genetic test that could save a life. "

To address that need, the Center has now launched " Project GINA " to

disseminate information to a range of audiences on GINA's protections

and requirements.

Following GINA's passage, the Center generated a widely-distributed

fact sheet summarizing GINA's provisions. More recently, the Center

co-hosted with the Bureau of National Affairs the first of a series

of webinars highlighting what GINA does and does not do.

Additionally, Hudson co-authored an article on GINA in the New

England Journal of Medicine. With the help of Gruber of the

National Workrights Institute and Pollitz of the town

Health Policy Institute, the Center will continue to take the lead in

disseminating information on GINA; developing informational materials

for patients, clinicians, health insurers, employers, researchers,

and ethics boards; and providing assistance to the agencies charged

with implementing GINA.

The Center soon will launch a dedicated Web site on GINA issues. In

addition to providing information about the new protections afforded

under the law, the new site will contain updates on how federal and

state regulators are implementing the law. Members of the public will

have the ability to email Center staff with questions, which will be

compiled into a frequently-asked-questions Web page. This one-stop

shop on GINA will be available beginning in September. For now, the

Center's GINA resources can be found under the " What's Happening "

heading on our homepage.

Written by - Groff

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