The wellness associations, carriers, vendors and others comprising the new Ethical Wellness coalition is today announcing its opposition to The Preserving Employee Wellness Programs Act, HR 1313.  We find the collection of genetic information on employees to be inconsistent with the Employee Health and Wellness Program Code of Conduct. First, it is a violation of employee privacy. Second, there is too much opportunity for such data to be misused or misinterpreted. 

 

Nor do we believe this screening to be “voluntary,” as employees facing forfeitures of thousands of dollars for non-compliance will find such a demand to be financially coercive.

 

Though not specifically covered in The Code, we take even greater exception to the inclusion of children in these proposed screening programs.

 

We urge Congress to reject this misguided legislation on multiple grounds.