British insurance companies on the extension of the freeze test

June 13 in London, the British insurance company agreed to the extension of genetic tests to freeze the implementation of 2014, during which customers can test the genes of cancer and heart disease and other physical risk to predict and may not disclose Negative results of the circumstances insured.

In the insurance industry, genetic testing has been a controversial topic in the main, because the trial can be applied blood, saliva or organizations to predict whether a person has a potentially fatal genetic disease trends.

According to results of the trial, life insurance or a person may refuse to raise their insurance premiums, even for a fully healthy customers can also fully in accordance with their genetic test results to determine.

British insurance company initially adopted in 2001 a stay of execution of the freeze plan, the insured value of life insurance 500,000 pounds (972,400 U.S. dollars). While only about 3 percent of the insurance coverage beyond the above limits.

Under these conditions, to provide life insurance companies may require customers only disclosed the results of a genetic test, that is, the Huntington's disease risk identification has proved that the disease is a nervous system diseases, the request has been Government Genetics and Insurance Committee's approval. But the British Insurance Association Friday said they agreed to voluntarily freeze the scheme be extended six years of implementation. "This means that people can own and family members of the insured, even in genetic tests showed negative results," the British Insurance Association, Stephen Haddril said.

Some candidates in the gene that true and reliable test results before the ban should have been kept, but some other person, genetic testing results and provide customers with family history and there is no distinction between.

U.S. legislators earlier passed a bill that would ban based on a person's genetic susceptibility to disease and its discrimination. The bill to prohibit insurance companies refused to insure customers, but also prohibit employers from using the information to employ or dismiss their employees.

Based on the reasons for doctors to carry out genetic tests, including the onset of symptoms before the discovery of genetic diseases, but also have hundreds of test can achieve this goal. 2011 to suspend the implementation of this plan will be considered again.