i124NEWS.TVThe Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) prohibits US employers and health insurance companies from making decisions based on the results of genetic screenings, with several exceptions. If employees voluntarily submit their genetic information as part of a workplace wellness program, for instance, they are not protected by GINA. But employers must not coerce workers into doing so.
Now, House Republicans have approved HR 1313, a bill that, if enacted, would remove at least one of GINA’s protections: essentially, it would allow employers to pressure workers into submitting their genetic information to the company in exchange for up to 30 percent reductions in health insurance costs. Once employees have submitted their information (voluntarily, as part of a workplace wellness program), few of GINA’s protections would apply.
“What this bill would do is completely take away the protections of existing laws,” Jennifer Mathis of the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law told STAT News. GINA and similar legislation “would be pretty much eviscerated,” she added.
The American Academy of Pediatrics and nearly 70 other organizations have drafted a letter opposing the bill, which has ...
