100,000 older Californians to be placed in massive gene database
LossofPrivacy.com
Posted by Irene
October 28, 2009
Kaiser Permanente, a health-care provider based in Oakland, California is set to implement a massive gene database to research environmental and genetic causes of disease.
Researchers will be able to study the data and seek insights into the interplay between genes, the environment, and disease, thanks to access to detailed electronic health records, patient surveys, and even records of environmental conditions where the patients live and work.
“The importance of this project is that it will, almost overnight–well, in two years–produce a very large amount of genetic and phenotypic data that a large number of investigators and scientists can begin asking questions of, rather than having to gather data first,” Schaefer says.
The effort will make use of existing saliva samples taken from California patients, whose average age is 65. Their DNA will be analyzed for 700,000 genetic variations called single-nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, using array analysis technology from Affymetrix in Santa Clara, CA. Through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the resulting information will be available to other researchers, along with a trove of patient data including patients’ Kaiser Permanente electronic health records, information about the air and water quality in their neighborhoods, and surveys about their lifestyles.
While scientists should be commended for researching diseases, their causes and possible cures, there lies a risk of losing health coverage when this becomes the norm. It will be near impossible to prevent insurance companies from looking at your data and denying coverage or vital surgeries because of possible risk factors.
