… it was tucked into mental health act

From genomeweb.com (registration required):

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) passed in the House this week as a section of the mental health act. An earlier version of the bill had been passed overwhelmingly in both houses of Congress, but had been stalled when Sen. Tom Coburn (R–Okla.) used a tactic called a legislative “hold” on the bill.

Sen. Coburn had cited concerns about complications having to do with the definition of “genetic testing” and with the need for legal protections for employers.

The Kennedy-sponsored bill, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007, will now move on to the Senate.

See related stories:

Insurance fears leave many to shun DNA tests, by Amy Harmon in the New York Times.

… thousands of people accustomed to a health insurance system in which known risks carry financial penalties are drawing their own conclusions about how a genetic predisposition to disease is likely to be regarded. As a result, the ability to more effectively prevent and treat genetic disease is faltering even as the means to identify risks people are born with are improving.

Why hasn’t the genetic nondiscrimination act passed the Senate? in dailykos.com

Genetic discrimination: Not just science fiction, by Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) in huffingtonpost.com

This problem is real and people’s health is on the line.We need to stand up for the future health of both our citizens and one of medicine’s most promising fields. The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act allows us to realize the tremendous potential of genetic research without jeopardizing one of the most fundamental privacies that can be imagined.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 7th, 2008 at 9:05 am and is filed under genetics, insurance, medicine, mental health, NOT2BEMISSED, politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.