GINA, which would prevent employers from discriminating against persons who have a genetic predisposition towards sickness and disease, has already passed the Senate and is expected to be signed into law by President Bush.
While the bill prevents discrimination in the workplace, it also prohibits health insurance providers from "adjusting premium or contribution amounts for a group on the basis of genetic information."
According to the National Institute of Health's National Human Genome Research Institute, "Genetic tests look for alterations in a person's genes or changes in the level of key proteins coded for by specific genes. Abnormal results on these tests could mean that someone has an inherited disorder."
"Genetic testing can [also] show whether a person is a carrier for a genetic disease" and can "show whether a person has an inherited disposition to a certain disease before symptoms start," the institute added.
