I recently blogged about the efforts to make it illegal to discriminate based on genetic information, and am happy to report that thanks to the 16,000 of you who contacted your Senators, GINA (Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act) passed through the Senate unanimously. The next step is for the House and the President to approve the bill, which will hopefully happen soon.
According to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, GINA prohibits discrimination by health insurers and employers on the basis of genetic information. So now, thanks to GINA, women who would otherwise have avoided genetic testing because they feared discrimination – thus being denied information that could help them manage their health or their family's health – will have protections under federal law. The passage of GINA is an important step that presents a great opportunity to promote personalized medicine and the use of genetic information in health care. This will lead to better research and development for new targeted drugs and treatments, which will save lives.
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