Genetic Discrimination

Spyware Weekly Newsletter ^ | 8/12/2005 | Mike Healan

[Born Conservative]

Since I am on the subject of movies, who remembers Gattaca? This was a movie set about 20 or 30 years in the future. Before people are born, their genes are altered to edit out any imperfections. They are stronger, smarter and faster than their natural-born counterparts and are highly unlikely ever to develop a disease.

People begin to discriminate against natural-borns, those people conceived and born without the benefit of genetic enhancement. Simply hand in a job application and the skin cells you leave on the paper will be examined to determine if you have any genetic imperfections. It is illegal, of course, but it happens anyway. Natural-borns are relegated to the low-income labor class, sweeping floors or slinging burgers.

Gattaca was an interesting, if not particularly good movie. And, like Minority Report, it predicts a problem that we may have to deal with soon out here in the real world. A few years ago, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway tested the genes of workers injured on the job. This was done completely without their permission. They were looking for indications that these employees might be genetically predisposed to developing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. The railroad was trying to find a way to avoid their obligation to pay Worker's Compensation benefits to those employees.

That may well be one of the worst ways possible in which to invade someone's privacy. I think even the "I have nothing to hide" crowd will be nervous about the idea of someone stealing parts of their body to run genetic tests. Even if they have absolutely nothing they would want to hide about their private lives, their genes are a different story. What if their boss lifts a skin cell for testing, then discovers a genetic predisposition for alcoholism left over from some distant ancestor? Will they continue heckling privacy advocates after an invasion of privacy leaves them walking home with a pink slip?

The US Senate has passed a bill which forbids employers and health insurers to discriminate against people based on information found in their genes. It is called the "Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2005". This bill now is awaiting action from the House of Representatives. The President already has indicated that he would sign it once it crosses his desk.

Unless you want your health insurance premiums to double because your family has been passing along an undesirable recessive gene since the founding of the Roman Empire, you should write to your Congressman or Congresswoman and ask him or her to vote for this bill.