Question

50 POINTS

Read the following genetics topics below. Choose a topic and then decide what side you are on. Remember that there is no "right" or "wrong" side. Ethical questions often have many points of view. Research your topic and write a persuasive essay at least 200 words in length and post it in the essay box below.

Topic 1: Should insurance companies have the right to learn the genetic profiles of the people they insure?

Topic 2: Should employers have the right to learn the genetic profiles of the people they hire? Are there special considerations for employees in jobs in which there is a high risk to others, such as airline pilots, doctors, bus drivers?

Topic 3: Should scientists who identify genes and create new genetic engineering techniques have the right to patent their methods for their own profit?

Answer 1

Prompt: Should employers have the right to learn the genetic profiles of the people they hire? Are there special considerations for employees in jobs in which there is a high risk to others, such as airline pilots, doctors, bus drivers?

Answer:

My belief is yes and no. In my opinion, the choice really depends on what the job is. Yes, there would be special considerations for high-risk jobs, including first-aid workers, bus drivers, and pilots, to name a few. For example, if someone who was born with narcolepsy probably wouldn't be the best candidate for any type of transportation job. According to Mayo Clinic, "The cause of narcolepsy isn't well understood but may involve genetic factors and abnormal signaling in the brain." On the other hand, employers who are employing people for a camera company may need to know if one of their employees was color-blind for testing purposes, they wouldn't need to know if their employee was born with it or received it from an STD. However, the fact remains, the employers don't have a 'right' to know the genetics of their employees, and most likely, never will. "Genetic Information and the Workplace" says, "Employers should not obtain or disclose genetic information about employees or potential employees under most circumstances.... An employer should be able to disclose genetic information for research and other purposes with the written, informed consent of the individual."

Step-by-step explanation:

Answer 2

1. Although the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 bars the use of genetic information for health insurance coverage decisions, it does not do so when it comes to life insurance, disability insurance or long-term care insurance. ... And some insurance companies have already started asking.

2. Employers have the right to learn the genetic profiles of the people they hire so that they know the risks that they are taking should there be complications with an employee's health during his/her stay with the company.Jobs that were mentioned in the above statement do not and are not supposed to have special considerations for such situation because these people are holding the lives of their clients in their own hands every time they are out and doing their work.

3.It takes a lot of hard work to make a valuable discovery in genetic engineering, as in any other area. If the people who do the work aren't allowed to patent their discoveries then anyone can take the discovery and use it. The inventor of the new technique won't get any profit for the hard work done. Nobody will work in a field if they don't get paid for it. The new techniques and discoveries will never be made if the inventors don't get paid for their invention. In any event, the payment doesn't go on forever as patents expire in 20 years.

Step-by-step explanation: