Sign on letter - also, please forward!
----- Original Message -----
From: newslinks-admin@...
To: Melissa Bitter, Executive Assistant
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2004 9:41 PM
Subject: [NewsLinks] Sign on letter - also, please forward!


Dear Friends,

We would like you to sign on to a letter we will be delivering to the House of
Representatives on April 1, 2004 during our press conference on genetic
nondiscrimination. In this letter, we urge the House to consider and pass the
Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act [S. 1053], to prohibit discrimination
on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and
employment.

We invite both individuals to sign on for their organizations or as individuals.

If you would like to sign on - please send your name, affiliation, city and
state to Melissa Bitter: mbitter@.... Your support is critical
- let's build momentum and get this bill passed into law! Please forward this
to other organizations, genetics and health professionals!

The letter follows.

Best,
Sharon

*************
Sharon Terry, MA

President and CEO
Genetic Alliance
4301 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Suite 404
Washington, DC 20008-2369
Voice: 202-966-5557 x213
Fax: 202-966-8553
Email: sterry@...
Web: http://www.geneticalliance.org


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
April 1, 2004

The Honorable J. Dennis Hastert
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515


Dear Speaker Hastert,


We urge you to consider and pass the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
[S. 1053], to prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information with
respect to health insurance and employment. This bill was passed unanimously
(95-0) in the Senate last year, is strongly supported by the President and
currently sits at the desk in the House.

We believe that all genetic information, including family history, deserves
strong and enforceable protections against misuse in health insurance and
employment. Such safeguards will protect the rights, privacy and
confidentiality of the individual and their family.

This is an exciting and hopeful time for genetic medicine. It is imperative,
however, that we, the public, be able to take full advantage of new medical
advances that could help prevent disease before it develops. Genetic
nondiscrimination legislation will reduce the likelihood of genetic information
being misused in health insurance or employment decision-making. Genetic
information is merely predictive information. Simply having a positive genetic
test does not mean one will develop a disease -- thus this information should
not be used to make decisions about insurance coverage or employment.

As biomedical research advances, genetic testing will become a critical tool in
the provision of healthcare. As a result, many more people will know about
their own genetic makeup, putting them at risk of genetic discrimination. These
issues will affect you, your family members, neighbors and colleagues. We
urgently request that you pass a genetic nondiscrimination bill that truly
protects all of us from that risk now and into the future.

Thank you for all your hard work and efforts on this critical issue. We look
forward to continuing to work with you to ensure that the Genetic Information
Nondiscrimination Act passes and can be signed by the President this year.

Sincerely,


Sharon F. Terry, MA
President/CEO, Genetic Alliance

And...



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