Original story
Internet News 14.3.2004
Gene-reader Denator causes fury among labour unions & insurance customers
The much-heralded Denator gene-reader has sparked off a furious wave of anger, particularly among labour organizations. People taking out insurance have also protested vigorously against the compulsory genetic mapping demanded by insurers using the Denator system.
Several companies have taken Denator tests into regular use when hiring new staff. The results of the gene-testing help firms to weed out prospective employees who might be prone to herditary illnesses.
Initialy Denator was developed for use in helath centres and hospitals as a means of studying the incidence of certain hereditary diseases and tendencies, and also the conditions under which such illnesses might appear in the patient. It did not take very long, however, for life insurance companies to recognize the value of such testing and introduce it into their medical examinations of new policyholders. In a very short time, insurers were denying cover to accident and life insurance clients in cases where the prospective customer was shown to have signs of the sort of diseases or hereditary disposition to them that would render them a bad risk. The next step was that Denator spread to the personnel departments of large corporations as a means of screening new employees.
A few months ago, the EU Social Affairs Committee expressed its concern that a section of the population would become completely barred from working life as a product of the Denator test results. One committee member even referred to the rise of a new form of racism. Many medical associations also oppose the use of Denator testing and emphasise that the great majority of hereditary dispositions to illness never actually result in contraction of the disease in question.
The principle of the Denator gene-reader is relatively simple. The system’s memory is loaded with the genes found thus far that have shown associations with such genetically-related diseases as hereditary cancers, or tendencies towards such things as alcoholism or mental health problems. Denator examines the DNA structure found in a blood sample and compares this against the maps in the genetic atlas stored in its memory. It then reports what kinds of genes it has uncovered that might suggest genetic weaknesses in the subject.
The World Health Organization has tested Denator and pronounced that it was too mechanical in its operation, and as much as 2% of the results given were false. The WHO considers that it is unethical for a person’s life and prospects to be blighted or put in jeopardy through an error in a Denator test-reading. The Organization also argues strongly against the current use of the device by laymen without medical or microbiological training. Some of these people - in corporations and insurance companies - have already been shown to have abused their position with a view to making money out of extortion, and have even forged results or switched blood samples. Particularly shocking cases have also been reported, for example, of parents who have tested their children in order to see whether it is worth their while investing in their schooling - on the off-chance that the children may be suffering from a form of congenital dementia that might break out in adolescence. Labour unions in both the United States and the European Union have threatened strike action on an unprecedented scale if Denator testing is not banned in the hiring of new staff.
Employers’ organizations and the insurance companies justify the use of the testing by arguing that it lessens companies’ risks and reduces insurance permiums. The CBI in Britain has also argued that the attendant reduction of payroll social- and pension costs is a boost to productivity and will encourage global economic growth.
Toteuma-arvio 2026
Toteuma lyhyesti
- Ilmiön toteuma: 5/5
- Toteuma viiden vuoden tarkkuudella: kyllä; arviointi-ikkuna on 1999–2009
- Toteuma väljemmällä aikahorisontilla: kyllä, erittäin vahvasti
- Ilmiön ydin: helposti saatava geenitieto voi johtaa syrjintään työelämässä ja vakuutuksissa sekä synnyttää sitä rajoittavaa lainsäädäntöä.
Geenitestien halpeneminen nosti syrjintäriskin konkreettiseksi poliittiseksi kysymykseksi. Yhdysvaltain GINA-laki kielsi vuonna 2008 geneettiseen tietoon perustuvaa syrjintää sairausvakuutuksissa ja työelämässä.
Johtopäätös: ennuste toteutui vahvasti, ja juuri ennakoitu sääntelytarve realisoitui aikaikkunassa.