Genes vs. Insurance Companies

Wouldn’t it be great to know just exactly how healthy we are going to be in the next forty years? To know whether or not our body is more prone to skin cancer? To see if we are likely to develop Alzheimer’s or Parkinson's? As usual, the economy has answered the Land of Excess’ prayers and has given rise to the mass sales of predictive genetic tests.

Once only used for medical reasons, basic predictive tests can now be ordered online for only a few hundred dollars. Companies like 23andMe have “opened the floodgates” for institutions to sell directly to consumers; previously, diagnostic tests had to be distributed through health care professionals. 23andMe’s direct relationship exemplifies how many other companies can market and sell their products in the future.

Many buyers argue that “information is power.” However, because most predictive tests are non-disclosable, insurers fear that without equal access to such information, they will lose out to knowledgeable customers. If clients secure upper-hands over insurers, insurance products could be wiped out, premiums could significantly increase and some insurance companies could even go out of business.

But consumers believe that if insurers were to have access to such information, they would be discriminated against and be refused coverage (under the circumstances of having a “bad gene”).

Unlike diagnostic tests, predictive tests are conducted on people who do not show symptoms. The most publicized case being of Angelina Jolie: after having taken one of these tests, Jolie discovered that she had a gene mutation which raised her risk of having breast cancer. She then proceeded to undergoing a double mastectomy.

While Jolie’s case may have been driven by paranoia, some insurers believe that these tests could have a positive impact. Discovery, a South African health insurer, plans to offer customers a test that maps part of their genome. The focus is on “actionable data”, where medical intervention or lifestyle change could decrease risk, explains Jonathan Broomberg from Discovery. The information that these tests provide, for insurers who want to keep their clients alive and well, could be very valuable.

While insurance is a very valuable resource that millions of people rely on, human beings are ever so thirsty for knowledge. While furthering one’s knowledge about their genetic health is a personal choice, the conflicts that emerge from such tests show how strong technology's influence on the economy is and its continuous growth that is yet to come.

Source: https://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21725783-insurers-worry-about-adverse-selection-insured-worry-about

Image source: http://news.emory.edu/stories/2013/07/genetic_testing_kit_results_vary/