Insurance Fears Lead Many to Shun DNA Tests

Ah , the american health care system. One of my favorite subjects.

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Victoria Grove wanted to find out if she was destined to develop the form of emphysema that ran in her family, but she did not want to ask her doctor for the DNA test that would tell her.

She worried that she might not be able to get health insurance, or even a job, if a genetic predisposition showed up in her medical records, especially since treatment for the condition, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, could cost over $100,000 a year. Instead, Ms. Grove sought out a service that sent a test kit to her home and returned the results directly to her.


So what is the problem here ?

The problem is that Health Insurance in the USA only seems to want to sell their product to people who don't need it , to people who won't ever get sick. If you have some kind of genetic disposition , they're going to raise the premiums because it's more likely you'll cost them money.

And since most health insurance in the states is through the employer, that costs the employer more money ... maybe they don't want to hire you.

In the states, this is called "Type One Uninsurable" , where upon the people who need health insurance the most are simply left to die.

I wonder if they understand ... no one needs that kind of health insurance. Maybe it would be better to do without it entirely , since it's only going to treat tennis elbow and the common cold and nothing else. Maybe we'll treat our own tennis elbow and let these guys go out of business from lack of customers ?