CONGRESS TO PASS GENETIC TEST ANTI-BIAS BILL (GINA): HOW THIS MIGHT EFFECT CALIFORNIA WORKERS
Medicine has been making new grounds in the way of genetic testing for precursors to many illnesses including breast cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and more. But more and more workers have concerns about getting preventative and early detection genetic tests for fear of retaliation from their bosses or losing their health insurance. The bill, started in the 1990s, has been toted as a great advancement to personal medicine and health care. Scientists agree that if you can detect one of these markers at an early state, the patient has a much greater chance of recovery.
So isn’t why then isn’t this just a quick pass? GINA would make it illegal for health insurers to raise premiums or deny coverage based on the information found in the tests. It would also prohibit employers from discriminating against employers based on the information, such as in decisions to hire, fire, promote, or other job duties. But the contenders have said this will do nothing about those who already have the disease and are discriminated against both by their insurance coverer and their employer.
However, this bill is meant mostly to prohibit employers and individual health insurance companies from discriminating against individuals based on the results of the test. There are already many state laws that make it illegal to prohibit groups from insurance based on their test results. Advocates of the bill argue this is the next step in protecting the advancement of personal medicine and less discrimination in the workplace based on personal disabilities.
If you suspect that you have been discriminated against at work for a genetic test, or have been refused benefits due to your medical disability in California, call the Law Offices of Greenberg & Rudman LLP at 1-800-252-9776 for a free consultation regarding your legal rights and how one of our experienced employment lawyers may be able to help you.
