Boulder Pondering Genetic Discrimination Law
According to an Associated Press news report, the proposed genetics discrimination law would help shield residents from problems due to information that can be gleaned from their genetic makeup. The city of Boulder proposed ordinance would include housing, public accommodations, and employment, the AP said.
“This is an area where the technological capabilities have grown rapidly and it is important that the social institutions respond and take responsibility,” Mayor Will Toor said, according to the AP.
Officials say the problem is that
new research may make it possible to identify an
individual’s lifetime risk for cancer, heart attack and
other diseases. City leaders say such research raises
ethical and legal questions, according to the AP.
For example, employers and other
companies could use the information to screen out
candidates. Or, a pre-employment physical, from DNA
testing to family medical histories, could be required
and used by companies, the AP reported.
Boulder officials believe the
proposed measure could help down the road as genetic
science advances and testing becomes cheaper.
“We’d like to be passing
ordinances before we have a terrible problem and no
solution,” City Attorney Joe de Raismes said, according
to the AP.
Some states have added the use of
genetic information to discrimination statutes while
others protect the information under privacy laws.
Colorado state law says that
genetic information is a property right that it is owned
by the individual and should be governed by privacy
statutes. Twenty-seven other states take a similar
approach, protecting genetic information under privacy
laws.
The League of Cities said 47 states and one county already have genetic discrimination laws, but that the Boulder proposal is more sweeping in scope than most.