President Signs Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
On Wednesday, May 21, 2008, President George W. Bush signed HR 493 into law.
HR 493 is The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, commonly referred to as GINA. It prohibits employers and health insurance companies from discriminating against people with genes that make it more likely they will develop cancer (such as BRCA1 or BRCA2 for breast and ovarian cancers) or other hereditary diseases.
The Act’s passage is being praised by Americans with genetic test results showing they’re genetically predisposed to cancer, as well as those who’ve been afraid to get DNA tests because they feared losing their health insurance.
Cancer advocacy groups and legislators worked for 13 years to get GINA passed, but now that the law’s enacted, there’s more to be done. As one expert said,
“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.”
Kathy Hudson, PhD
Director, Genetics and Public Policy Center
Johns Hopkins University
If you’d like to read more about the potential uses of genetic information, you can click here to visit the Human Genome Project Information page.
Source: C-SPAN
Related Links: Ovarian Cancer National Alliance; The Coalition for Genetic Fairness; Kaisernetwork.org; NetWellness.org
Related Video: President Bush Signs H.R. 493, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 from The White House
Technorati Tags: pre-vivor; oncology; genetic counseling; family history; cancer prevention; health policy
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