An employer buying DNA on potential job candidates is opening themselves up to a world of litigation for little real gain. Similarly, health insurance may no longer discriminate based on prior health conditions due to the dreaded 'Obama Care'.
We can debate if that's enough, or if these things should be rolled back. However, at a practical level it's currently a non issue.
PS: While most of this is not a significant disability. If people treat DNA condition X as an issue then it fall under "or a person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment. "
Obamacare prevented insurance companies from treating active genetic disorders as preexisting conditions.
https://www.23andme.com/privacy/#drawer-thirdpartysharing
23andMe will not provide any person's data (genetic or non-genetic) to an insurance company or employer.
We have been long-time supporters of legislative efforts intended to prevent genetic discrimination and to safeguard individuals' genetic privacy. In the US specifically, we were active in the development of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) enacted in 2008. GINA is federal legislation that protects Americans from discrimination in health insurance and employment decisions on the basis of genetic information. GINA does not cover life or disability insurance providers.
In addition, we have supported the California Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (Senate Bill No. 559), which was enacted in 2011.
The ideal would be that I can have a friend pay cash in a physical store to get the kit. There is no account. The package includes an ID code that I may look up on the web site to get results, obviously browsing over Tor from borrowed wireless.
Currently, it looks like I'd have to actually buy the equipment myself and sequence my own DNA at home.
In the end it's your life, your defects that could be on sale and determine your worth in a capitalist society. This is scary because you fate is determined by your birth and some algorithmus that may or may not be correct and some statistical chance that you suffer of certain diseases.
From a capitalistic "I want to minimize costs and maximize profit" perspective it's a perfect fit but the results on society are scary.
On the other hand there are clear benefits to have the possibility to prevent the harm caused by diseases or to adjust your life on informed data about possible risks.
However if you life insurance can buy that data from 23andme or your employer you are fucked and all the talk of equality before the law is moot because some DNA data from you prevents you from closing contracts due to "risk mitigation".
I don't know why anyone would belittle criticism in this direction - it's something that needs to be debated.
I thought about using 23andme but this problems stopped me from doing so. This shouldn't be a for profit but these are the times.