The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), punishes employers for discriminating against employees based on genetic information and requires employers to keep any genetic information about workers in separate files as a confidential medical record.

Genetic information includes information about an individual’s or their family’s genetic tests.  Employers should not request information about Family medical history because it is often used to determine whether someone has an increased risk of getting a condition in the future.

Employers are not allowed to use genetic information when making hiring, firing, job placement or promotion decisions.  This means that an employer can’t make decisions based on the fact that they are aware that the employee may have a genetic predisposition to develop a disease in the future.

Employers should not request, require or purchase genetic information or disclose their employee’s genetic information.