Florida Guarantees DNA Privacy on Insurance

Have you ever worried that the results of your DNA test could be use by insurers to increase the cost of your policy? Florida has become the first state to guarantee DNA privacy for customers’ life, disability, and long-term care insurance.

Florida’s HB 1189 – Genetic Information for Insurance Purposes bill prohibits life insurers and long-term care insurers from canceling, limiting, or denying coverage, or establishing differentials in premium rates based on genetic information. It also prohibits such insurers from taking certain actions relating to genetic information for any insurance purpose.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the legislation was filed by incoming House Speaker Chris Sprowls. He said that in 2017, when he was applying for life insurance, he was placed on hold.

The insurance company played advertisements from 23andMe and AncestryDNA. He became concerned that one day, insurers would be asking people for the results of their DNA tests. Florida’s HB 1189 blocks insurance companies from requiring or soliciting genetic information from applicants.

This is good news for people who live in Florida and who have taken a DNA test from Ancestry.com, 23andMe, MyHeritage, or other companies that sell DNA test kits. Previous to this legislation, California, New Jersey, and New York passed laws that require insurers to get informed consent when requesting genetic testing for life or disability insurance.

As you may have guessed, insurance companies really hate Florida’s HB 1189 bill. Some have tried to argue that knowing a customer’s genetic data could result in that customer getting a lower premium.

The converse of that is there will be customers whose genetic data is not seen as favorably by insurance companies – and those people could get stuck with a higher premium. No one wants to be charged more simply because they took a DNA test.

Related articles at FamilyTree,com:

Findmypast Says its DNA Testing is Best for Protecting Privacy

Differences Between DNA Testing for Genealogy and for Catching Criminals

DNA Testing Might Affect Your Ability to Get Life Insurance