[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 95 (Thursday, July 20, 2000)]
[House]
[Page H6606]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          IN STRONG SUPPORT OF PROTECTING GENETIC INFORMATION

  (Mr. BENTSEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BENTSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to strongly urge the 
Republican leadership to expedite consideration of two bills which will 
provide vital consumer protections for medical and genetic information.
  The first bill, H.R. 4585, medical privacy legislation, was recently 
approved by the House Committee on Banking and Financial Services. 
During consideration of the bill, it would essentially offer an 
amendment which would for the first time provide real consumer 
protection for genetic information.
  I also urge the House leadership to bring to the floor H.R. 2457, 
sponsored by our colleague, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. 
Slaughter), that would prohibit discrimination based upon genetic 
information.
  With the recent announcement of the completion of the detailed map of 
the 24 pairs of the human chromosomes of the human genome project, it 
is vitally important that the Congress act now to protect genetic 
information.
  As a representative of the Texas Medical Center, including the Baylor 
College of Medicine, where much of this breakthrough work is being 
done, I believe there is great promise in knowing this information. 
However, without sufficient protections, we risk that Americans will 
not agree to participate in gene therapy treatments to cure disease.
  The real danger will be the potential to discriminate against 
individuals in their health insurance, their employment, and in their 
financial products. I urge the House to act on these important measures 
today.

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