Genetic Information in Employment in the United States and Europe

The progress of genomic science is generating novel ethical, legal and social controversies. Outside the confidentiality of the doctor-patient relationship, personal genetic information may be used to discriminate against individuals. In the United States, incidents of genetic discrimination in employment have already been reported, genetic testing has been used in some of the major American workplaces and public fears are growing. Yet, no uniform and comprehensive legal protection against genetic information misuse in employment had existed in the US before the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act became law in May 2008, after 13 years of debate in Congress. This work reviews the policies related to genetic information in employment in the US and the EU-15 prior to 2005. The study shows that the problems with genetic information in the workplace were largely specific to the US, and new policy alternatives were required to deal with them. The study concludes that the EU, similarly to the US, did not yet have a clear and consistent policy on the use of genetic information in employment, though personal data had been more strictly regulated in the EU than in the US.