For now, genetic testing can be used to help diagnose certain diseases, like Huntington’s disease and Cystic fibrosis, but in most cases there is no cure available and little that can be done to treat these diseases. Genetic testing is also used in criminal investigations. When it helps to identify a rapist or murderer, that is a benefit to society, but when testing is forced on a large group of innocent people to try to identify the

Besides discrimination, there are also privacy issues that relate to genetic testing. There is the issue of doctor/patient confidentiality. Is a doctor obligated to inform a patient’s family if a serious genetic disorder is found, so that other at risk members can be tested? Or should he respect the patient’s right to privacy and keep the information confidential? This is mainly an ethical question, but it also has legal ramifications since the doctor/patient relationship is regulated by a code of conduct (Foubister). Another issue of privacy is in law enforcement. Several states currently allow or even mandate genetic testing for all people arrested for crimes, including juvenile offenders, regardless of whether or not there is a conviction in the case. Often times the blood samples themselves are stored and not just the identifying information, which means that others have access to more than just the identifying factors. There are also state statutes that allow the samples to be used in other ways, without the individual’s consent (National Commission). These privacy issues must be addressed.

Genetic testing can lead to discrimination. Insurance companies hope to use the results of genetic tests to categorize people based on their risk of developing a disease. This would result in some people having to pay high premiums, or being denied coverage entirely, based on information that may never come to pass and supposed risk

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