Life insurers can legally discriminate against and deny cover to people who have undergone genetic testing, by refusing or capping cover.
Julian Hill had his "eyes opened" to the risks of genetic testing after what happened to his daughter.Mr Hill's daughter, Elanor Devitt, was healthy, fit and only 20 when a potentially deadly blood clot formed in her leg while she was travelling overseas. "I have this condition for life. I didn't ask to have it. It's something I have to live with now," she said.Mr Hill is now calling on his colleague Stephen Jones, the minister for financial services, to urgently implement a total ban on the use of genetic testing in life insurance underwriting.
"But while we are promoting genetic health, on the other hand, the explicit exemption that currently exists in Australian law allows life insurers to genetically discriminate against people. "Every time someone considers whether they want to have a genetic test or wants to be part of genetic research, we have to tell them that life insurance implications might be part of signing up for that," Dr Tiller said.
"People who were trying to apply for cover that was over those limits could be discriminated against. The other issue was this is … not enforceable at law. It doesn't change the underlying right legally of insurers to have this information." "It has never been the intention of the life insurance industry to deter people from taking genetic tests that give them more information about their overall health," she said in a statement.
"I don't want to have to regret understanding your own heritage and health and try to do things to live a longer, happier, healthier life."