Health Council Warns Of Goverment Plan To Claim
Ownership Of Every Newborn's DNA
Pending Minnesota bill will strip citizens of genetic
privacy and DNA ownership rights
A prominent Health Organization has warned that there is an ongoing
semi-covert movement by state and federal governments to claim
ownership of every newborn baby's DNA for the purpose of genetic
research without the consent of individual citizens.
A pending bill on the floor of the Minnesota House
and Senate will strip citizens of genetic privacy and DNA ownership
rights, The
Citizens Council on Healthcare has warned.
"Today, a state genetic privacy law requires
informed parent consent for government testing, ownership and
research on the DNA of the newest Minnesota residents. The Minnesota
Department of Health wants to eliminate the informed consent requirements.
A bill to remove consent requirements for government ownership
and genetic research will soon be voted on by the Minnesota House
and Senate." The CCHC website explains.
"Thus far, the state of Minnesota has illegally
collected and claims ownership to the DNA of 780,000 children
(soon to be voting adults) and has provided the DNA of 42,210
children to genetic researchers without parent consent. Approximately,
73,000 children are born in Minnesota every year. About 4.2 million
children are born across the nation. All of them are losing their
genetic privacy and DNA ownership rights." the organization's
report continues.
The state treats the activity as an "opt out"
program, whereby if the parents of the newborn infant do not specifically
opt out of the process, the state presumes its has “informed
consent” and that the parents have opted in.
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CCHC President Twila Brase has warned that the databases
housing the DNA could form the basis for a new eugenics movement,
the practice of "perfecting" the human race through
genetic manipulation, previously endorsed by Planned Parenthood
founder Margaret
Sanger, and toyed with by the likes of Adolf
Hitler.
Ms. Brase explained in a statement
last month that state Health Department officials are now seeking
exemption for the so called "DNA Warehouse" from Minnesota
privacy law. This would enable state officials to continue to
take the DNA of newborn infants without consent.
Essentially this would mean that eventually every
person's DNA would be collected at birth, warehoused by the state
in what is known as a "genomic biobank", and sold or
given away to private or governmental genetic researchers, who
may manipulate, alter or splice the DNA in any way they see fit.
Such information would represent a goldmine to employers,
insurance companies, medical institutions, and big pharma.
Under such conditions we are faced with the prospect
of a society that is literally the mirror image of the nightmarish
vision outlined by Aldous Huxley in his 1932 novel Brave New
World, where individuals are categorized in a social hierarchy
according to their genetic traits.
Watch Twila Brase explain the possible consequences
of the pending DNA profiling legislation:
Ms. Brase has been warning of the ongoing move for
a a number of years. In January 2007 she issued a written testimony
to the Minnesota legislature on the unethical and hidden uses
of harvested DNA by the state.
Recently, Minnesota based researcher and activist
Marti
Oakley revealed that, according to her polling, the
majority of parents or grand parents of newborns have no idea
that this is happening.
She writes:
Further, not one knew that they had the right
to demand the blood and tissue samples be destroyed after 45
days per written request. Even had they known, and the samples
were destroyed (you would have no way of knowing if they really
were) the information gleaned from them would still be available
and on file…..in perpetuity.
Also unknown to at least the new parents in Minnesota, is that
once that 45 days has lapsed, the state now claims that they
“own” the DNA of that child.
Though the Minnesota case has received recent public
attention, such DNA harvesting is not restricted to that state
and is being undertaken nationwide.
The
National Conference of State Legislatures lists for
all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, the various
statutes or regulatory provisions under which newborns' DNA is
being collected.
DNA of newborns has been harvested, tested, stored
and experimented with by all 50 states. In addition, all 50 states
are now routinely providing these results to the Department of
Homeland Security.
In the UK, a similar DNA harvesting program was
rejected
in 2005 by The Human Genetics Commission, who cited
cost and ethical problems in a report to government ministers.
However, DNA profiling of all newborn babies has
since been called for by lawmakers and most
recently by senior police officers.
Oppose the Minnesota Department of Health’s
refusal to fully inform parents
Currently, there is a monumental effort under way by The Citizens
Council on Health Care to petition the state to oppose illegal
State government ownership of the blood, DNA and genetic test
results of newborn citizens in Minnesota. http://www.cchconline.org/petition/babyDNA2007.php
The CCHC is calling on Governor Tim Pawlenty to direct the Minnesota
Department of Health (MDH) to comply with Minnesota state privacy
law, to fully inform parents of the genetic testing process and
their legal rights–and to dismantle MDH’s illegal
warehouse of newborn citizen DNA. (Contact Sue Jeffers directly
at: S1U2E3@aol.com )
For more resources on this issue visit the CCHC
website.
A prominent Health Organization has warned that there is an ongoing
semi-covert movement by state and federal governments to claim
ownership of every newborn baby's DNA for the purpose of genetic
research without the consent of individual citizens.
