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considering medical privacy, individuals should know that
there is an organization composed of over 600 insurance companies
that collects and shares medical information, called the Medical
Information Bureau (MIB).
 MIB
maintains and shares records generally without a person’s
knowledge. MIB data includes information submitted on life,
health or disability insurance applications within the past
seven years. This may entail information on physical examinations
and disease history, such as diabetes, HIV-AIDS, or heart
disease. Files can also contain information on a person’s
risky hobbies such as sky diving, bungee jumping, motorcycle
riding or scuba diving.
The purpose of the MIB is to share medical information. If
a person was found uninsurable by one insurance company, MIB
prevents a person from obtaining a policy by trying to get
a more favorable physical exam. MIB also helps combat insurance
fraud from persons who might try to collect on the same disease
or injury from several different companies. By housing all
the medical records of those insured, insurance companies
are able to monitor any fraud so that they may determine risk
assessments for the calculations of premiums.
Find out what is in your own MIB file: http://www.mib.com.
Uncertainty About How Gene Based Test
Results will be used in the Future
Predictive genetic and genomic testing could be of great
interest to health and life insurance companies. In the United
States there are two health insurance programs in which those
who qualify are provided with insurance by a single government
payer. The two programs are the Medicare program for those
age 65 and older and the Medicaid program for those whose
income levels are deemed too low to be able to afford health
insurance. If a person meets the age and income status, they
qualify for these programs. Most other health insurance is
provided by private sector companies who are free to set rules
and qualifications for those whom it chooses to insure, with
some regulation by state insurance commissions. Since these
companies currently use rules about pre-existing conditions
to either deny insurance coverage or to increase the rates
to some individuals. Therefore, private insurance companies
have a stake in gene based test results, as they are in the
business of managing risk.
If patient records contain information on the risk of common
ailments such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, Parkinson’s
disease, it seems unlikely that insurance companies will ignore
the information. This information has the potential to reduce
insurance companies’ financial risks either for health
policies or for life insurance. To date, there has been little
evidence that insurance companies are using gene-based information
to determine policy eligibility. Two possible reasons for
this are the relatively rare use of genetic testing by patients
and the fact that individuals are not able to learn the basis
of a typical insurance or employment decision.
Genetic Susceptibility and Employment
Is an employer required to protect an individual with a greater
susceptibility to harm in the workplace? Employers must consider
whether a high-risk individual to a disease should be hired
or not because they could then be considered “disabled?”
Mark Rothestein, a law professor at the University of Kentucky,
Lexington, has proposed the “Bill of Rights of Examinees”
as a solution. This states that medical testing should be
voluntary in the workplace so that only employees would know
the results and could decide whether to take the job or not.
So far, 28 states have passed laws prohibiting genetic testing
and genetic discrimination.
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