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Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS)

What GINA Does Not Do

Reference Number: MTAS-1943
Reviewed Date: 02/06/2023

These provisions do not:

  • Prohibit medical underwriting based on current health status.
  • Mandate coverage for any medical tests or treatments.
  • Subject employers to remedies and procedures that are any different from those in other civil rights laws such as Title VII.
  • Apply to employers with fewer than 15 employees.
  • Apply to members of the military.
  • Cover an individual’s manifested disease or condition from which an individual. is experiencing symptoms; however, it does protect information about disease in an individual’s family members such as family history.
  • Interfere with an employee’s ability to qualify for FMLA or similar leave statues.Hinder an employer-sponsored wellness program or other genetic services offered by an employer.
  • Interfere with an employer’s ability to offer a safe and hazard free workplace.
  • Preempt state law; therefore, some state’s discrimination laws provide greater protection.
  • Prevent a health insurer from using information about an existing condition, even if that condition has a genetic basis (i.e., breast cancer diagnosis). The insurer may need family history to approve certain procedures and testing but the information cannot be used against the individual for purposes of rate increases or cancellations/reductions in coverage.
  • Restrict the practice of medicine or the authority of healthcare professionals, whether or not they are affi liated with a health plan, issuer, or employer.