Little-noticed House Republican bill would let employers demand workers genetic test results

[babylonsister]

purity tests?

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/03/little-noticed-house-republican-bill-would-let-employers-demand-workers-genetic-test-results/

Little-noticed House Republican bill would let employers demand workers’ genetic test results
STAT
10 Mar 2017 at 10:06 ET

Sharon Begley
Posted with permission from STAT

A House panel voted to allow employers to require workers to undergo genetic testing or risk paying a penalty of thousands of dollars.


A little-noticed bill moving through Congress would allow companies to require employees to undergo genetic testing or risk paying a penalty of thousands of dollars, and would let employers see that genetic and other health information.

Giving employers such power is now prohibited by legislation including the 2008 genetic privacy and nondiscrimination law known as GINA. The new bill gets around that landmark law by stating explicitly that GINA and other protections do not apply when genetic tests are part of a "workplace wellness" program.

The bill, HR 1313, was approved by a House committee on Wednesday, with all 22 Republicans supporting it and all 17 Democrats opposed. It has been overshadowed by the debate over the House GOP proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, but the genetic testing bill is expected to be folded into a second ACA-related measure containing a grab-bag of provisions that do not affect federal spending, as the main bill does.

"What this bill would do is completely take away the protections of existing laws," said Jennifer Mathis, director of policy and legal advocacy at the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, a civil rights group. In particular, privacy and other protections for genetic and health information in GINA and the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act "would be pretty much eviscerated," she said.

more...

http://www.rawstory.com/2017/03/little-noticed-house-republican-bill-would-let-employers-demand-workers-genetic-test-results/

[RedWedge]

1. Uncouple health insurance from employment. Problem solved.

[dhill926]

2. can eugenics be far behind...

jesus christ...

[gypsy11]

4. That was my thought...

this is an extremely dangerous slippery slope.

[Lucinda]

3. Link to he bill:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1313/text

[greatauntoftriplets]

5. Insane and fascist.

[Freddie]

6. Workplace wellness programs are a scam

I know this because I administer one (I was "volunteered&quot .
In our case, Aetna has "wellness funds" given to each employer in our group for voluntary (at the moment) health screenings, health-related seminars and rewards for participating in fitness and nutrition programs. The only people that participate are those that are already doing the right things (diet and exercise) for their health.
IMO eventually these things will no longer be voluntary and Aetna will use the info to charge people more who don't meet weight/fitness goals.
And largely a waste of $$ as most heart disease is diagnosed in the retired.