COULD DNA TEST RESULTS AFFECT  YOUR HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE?

Advances in sciences are making great strides in preventive health; recent improvements on practices like DNA testing help doctors learn about the patient’s genetic makeup, thus allowing them to calculate if someone is at an elevated risk for a particular disease.  With this type of knowledge, the patient can then take an active approach to living a lifestyle that is healthy and hopefully preventative in the long-run.  Unfortunately, people are afraid to take these DNA tests because to find out if they have genetically transmitted diseases in their family may eventually affect their health insurance coverage making it even less affordable and further, causing discrimination from health insurance providers and employers.

The fear of facing dire economic consequences keeps most people from undergoing DNA testing. According to efluxmedia.com, “It’s pretty clear that the public is afraid of taking advantage of genetic testing. If that continues, the future of medicine that we would all like to see happen stands the chance of being dead on arrival,” Dr. Francis S. Collins, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at the National Institutes of Health was quoted as saying by the New York Times.

However, health insurers and employers deny there are disparities. Their decisions do not depend on DNA information. Moreover, they don't request DNA information at all. They ensure that they strictly follow Americans with Disabilities Act, and it clearly protects employee and insurance receiver rights. Accoring to huliq.com, "It's an anecdotal fear," said Mohit M. Ghose from America's Health Insurance Plans. "Our industry is not interested in any way, shape or form in discriminating based on a genetic marker."

A recent study by Georgetown University Health Policy Institute found that 7 out of 92 health insurer decisions are not fair to those with genetically transmitted diseases.  In cases where the genetic make-up of a patient suggests increased probability of diseases, the health insurance is either denied or the patients are charged with much higher premium payments.

There is Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act that should prohibit health insurance providers and employers from collecting DNA information and allowing discrimination among those genetically inclined to any disease. However, this act still needs Senate approval to start protecting employee rights. Meanwhile, those hiding from DNA tests will suffer from more diseases.

If you would like to get involved, you can e-mail your Senators and urge them to push for the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act to come to the floor for a vote. You can find a sample letter and more information here.

To read more about the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act.

To see the official Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Bill