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IN THE NEWS......
Senate Passes Genetic
Nondiscrimination Act
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
April 24, 2008
The U.S. Senate has passed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA).
GINA prohibits discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect
to health insurance and employment.
"The Ovarian Cancer National Alliance supports GINA so that no one will be
forced to choose between the potential benefits of genetic testing and keeping a
job or health insurance," said Dr. Karen Orloff Kaplan, executive director.
The law will help decrease barriers for women to get genetic testing to find out
if they are positive for inherited mutations in one of two genes. Called breast
cancer gene 1 (BRCA1) and breast cancer gene 2 (BRCA2), the genes increase a
woman's risk for both breast and ovarian cancer. These genes are responsible for
about five percent to 10 percent of all ovarian cancers.
The Senate version of the bill will be sent to the House of Representatives for
vote. It is expected that the House will quickly pass GINA, and that President
Bush will sign the bill into law. There is currently no federal law outlawing
discrimination based on genetic information.
"We look forward to implementation of this law so that patients and their
medical providers can make better treatment decisions with a full range of
information, which, for many women, includes genetic information," Dr. Kaplan
added.
No effective screening or early detection test exists for ovarian cancer, so
genetic information is a crucial tool to predict risk of ovarian cancer. Because
employers or health insurers can access genetic information, many women and
their families are reluctant to learn their genetic background.
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