II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1322

To prohibit health insurance and employment discrimination against individuals and their family members on the basis of predictive genetic information or genetic services.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 1, 1999

Mr. DASCHLE (for himself, Mr. HARKIN, Mr. DODD, and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

A BILL

To prohibit health insurance and employment discrimination

against individuals and their family members on the

basis of predictive genetic information or genetic services.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Genetic Non5 discrimination in Health Insurance and Employment Act

6 of 1999’’.
2

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1 TITLE I—PROHIBITION OF

2 HEALTH INSURANCE DIS3 CRIMINATION ON THE BASIS

4 OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC IN5 FORMATION

6 SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT IN7 COME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.

8 (a) PROHIBITION OF HEALTH INSURANCE DISCRIMI9 NATION ON THE BASIS OF GENETIC SERVICES OR PRE10 DICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

11 (1) NO ENROLLMENT RESTRICTION FOR GE12 NETIC SERVICES.—Section 702(a)(1)(F) of the Em13 ployee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29

14 U.S.C. 1182(a)(1)(F)) is amended by inserting be15 fore the period ‘‘(or information about a request for

16 or the receipt of genetic services by such individual

17 or family member of such individual)’’.

18 (2) NO DISCRIMINATION IN GROUP RATE BASED

19 ON PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subpart B of Part 7 of

21 subtitle B of title I of the Employee Retirement

22 Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1185

23 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the

24 following:
3

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1 ‘‘SEC. 714. PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST

2 GROUPS ON THE BASIS OF PREDICTIVE GE3 NETIC INFORMATION.

4 ‘‘A group health plan, and a health insurance issuer

5 offering group health insurance coverage in connection

6 with a group health plan, shall not deny eligibility to a

7 group or adjust premium or contribution rates for a group

8 on the basis of predictive genetic information concerning

9 an individual in the group (or information about a request

10 for or the receipt of genetic services by such individual

11 or family member of such individual).’’.

12 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

13 (i) Section 702(b)(2)(A) of the Em14 ployee Retirement Income Security Act of

15 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1182(b)) is amended to

16 read as follows:

17 ‘‘(A) to restrict the amount that an em18 ployer may be charged for coverage under a

19 group health plan, except as provided in section

20 714; or’’.

21 (ii) Section 732(a) of the Employee

22 Retirement Income Security Act of 1974

23 (29 U.S.C. 1191a(a)) is amended by strik24 ing ‘‘section 711’’ and inserting ‘‘sub25 sections (a)(1)(F), (b) (with respect to

26 cases relating to genetic information or in-
4

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1 formation about a request or receipt of ge2 netic services by an individual or family

3 member of such individual), (c), (d), (e),

4 (f), or (g) of section 702, section 711 and

5 section 714’’.

6 (b) LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

7 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC

8 INFORMATION.—Section 702 of the Employee Retirement

9 Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1182) is amended

10 by adding at the end the following:

11 ‘‘(c) GENETIC TESTING.—

12 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON REQUESTING OR REQUIR13 ING GENETIC TESTING.—A group health plan, or a

14 health insurance issuer offering health insurance

15 coverage in connection with a group health plan,

16 shall not request or require an individual or a family

17 member of such individual to undergo a genetic test.

18 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

19 this title shall be construed to limit the authority of

20 a health care professional, who is providing treat21 ment with respect to an individual and who is em22 ployed by a group health plan or a health insurance

23 issuer, to request that such individual or family

24 member of such individual undergo a genetic test.

25 Such a health care professional shall not require
5

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1 that such individual or family member undergo a ge2 netic test.

3 ‘‘(d) COLLECTION OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR4 MATION.—Except as provided in subsections (f) and (g),

5 a group health plan, or a health insurance issuer offering

6 health insurance coverage in connection with a group

7 health plan, shall not request, require, collect, or purchase

8 predictive genetic information concerning an individual (or

9 information about a request for or the receipt of genetic

10 services by such individual or family member of such indi11 vidual).

12 ‘‘(e) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR13 MATION.—A group health plan, or a health insurance

14 issuer offering health insurance coverage in connection

15 with a group health plan, shall not disclose predictive ge16 netic information about an individual (or information

17 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

18 such individual or family member of such individual) to—

19 ‘‘(1) any entity that is a member of the same

20 controlled group as such issuer or plan sponsor of

21 such group health plan;

22 ‘‘(2) any other group health plan or health in23 surance issuer or any insurance agent, third party

24 administrator, or other person subject to regulation

25 under State insurance laws;
6

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1 ‘‘(3) the Medical Information Bureau or any

2 other person that collects, compiles, publishes, or

3 otherwise disseminates insurance information;

4 ‘‘(4) the individual’s employer or any plan spon5 sor; or

6 ‘‘(5) any other person the Secretary may speci7 fy in regulations.

8 ‘‘(f) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT FOR GENETIC

9 SERVICES.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to payment

11 for genetic services conducted concerning an indi12 vidual or the coordination of benefits, a group health

13 plan, or a health insurance issuer offering group

14 health insurance coverage in connection with a group

15 health plan, may request that the individual provide

16 the plan or issuer with evidence that such services

17 were performed.

18 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

19 paragraph (1) shall be construed to—

20 ‘‘(A) permit a group health plan or health

21 insurance issuer to request (or require) the re22 sults of the services referred to in such para23 graph; or

24 ‘‘(B) require that a group health plan or

25 health insurance issuer make payment for serv-
7

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1 ices described in such paragraph where the in2 dividual involved has refused to provide evi3 dence of the performance of such services pur4 suant to a request by the plan or issuer in ac5 cordance with such paragraph.

6 ‘‘(g) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT OF OTHER

7 CLAIMS.—With respect to the payment of claims for bene8 fits other than genetic services, a group health plan, or

9 a health insurance issuer offering group health insurance

10 coverage in connection with a group health plan, may re11 quest that an individual provide predictive genetic infor12 mation so long as such information—

13 ‘‘(1) is used solely for the payment of a claim;

14 ‘‘(2) is limited to information that is directly re15 lated to and necessary for the payment of such claim

16 and the claim would otherwise be denied but for the

17 predictive genetic information; and

18 ‘‘(3) is used only by an individual (or individ19 uals) within such plan or issuer who needs access to

20 such information for purposes of payment of a

21 claim.

22 ‘‘(h) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—

23 ‘‘(1) COLLECTION OR DISCLOSURE AUTHORIZED

24 BY INDIVIDUAL.—The provisions of subsections (d)

25 (regarding collection) and (e) shall not apply to an
8

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1 individual if the individual (or legal representative of

2 the individual) provides prior, knowing, voluntary,

3 and written authorization for the collection or disclo4 sure of predictive genetic information.

5 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE FOR HEALTH CARE TREAT6 MENT.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to

7 limit or restrict the disclosure of predictive genetic

8 information from a health care provider to another

9 health care provider for the purpose of providing

10 health care treatment to the individual involved.

11 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

12 ‘‘(1) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The term ‘con13 trolled group’ means any group treated as a single

14 employer under subsections (b), (c), (m), or (o)of

15 section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

16 ‘‘(2) GROUP HEALTH PLAN, HEALTH INSUR17 ANCE ISSUER.—The terms ‘group health plan’ and

18 ‘health insurance issuer’ include a third party ad19 ministrator or other person acting for or on behalf

20 of such plan or issuer.’’.

21 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 502 (29 U.S.C. 1132)

22 is amended by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘(n) VIOLATION OF GENETIC DISCRIMINATION OR

24 GENETIC DISCLOSURE PROVISIONS.—In any action under

25 this section against any administrator of a group health
9

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1 plan, or health insurance issuer offering group health in2 surance coverage in connection with a group health plan

3 (including any third party administrator or other person

4 acting for or on behalf of such plan or issuer) alleging

5 a violation of subsection (a)(1)(F), (b) (with respect to

6 cases relating to genetic information or information about

7 a request or receipt of genetic services by an individual

8 or family member of such individual), (c), (d), (e), (f), or

9 (g) of section 702, or section 714, the court may award

10 any appropriate legal or equitable relief. Such relief may

11 include a requirement for the payment of attorney’s fees

12 and costs, including the costs of expert witnesses.

13 ‘‘(o) CIVIL PENALTY.—The monetary provisions of

14 section 308(b)(2)(C) of Public Law 101–336 (42 U.S.C.

15 12188(b)) shall apply for purposes of the Secretary en16 forcing the provisions referred to in subsection (n), except

17 that any such relief awarded shall be paid only into the

18 general fund of the Treasury.’’.

19 (d) PREEMPTION.—Section 731 of the Employee Re20 tirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1191)

21 is amended—

22 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ‘‘or (e)’’

23 after ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and

24 (2) by adding at the end the following:
10

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1 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE OF GENETIC INFORMA2 TION.—With respect to group health insurance coverage

3 offered by a health insurance issuer, the provisions of this

4 part relating to genetic information (including information

5 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

6 an individual or a family member of such individual) shall

7 not be construed to supersede any provision of State law

8 which establishes, implements, or continues in effect a

9 standard, requirement, or remedy that more completely—

10 ‘‘(1) protects the confidentiality of genetic in11 formation (including information about a request for

12 or the receipt of genetic services by an individual or

13 a family member of such individual) or the privacy

14 of an individual or a family member of the individual

15 with respect to genetic information (including infor16 mation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

17 services by an individual or a family member of such

18 individual) than does this part; or

19 ‘‘(2) prohibits discrimination on the basis of ge20 netic information than does this part.’’.

21 (e) DEFINITIONS.—Section 733(d) of the Employee

22 Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C.

23 1191b(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

24 ‘‘(5) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘family

25 member’ means with respect to an individual—
11

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1 ‘‘(A) the spouse of the individual;

2 ‘‘(B) a dependent child of the individual,

3 including a child who is born to or placed for

4 adoption with the individual; and

5 ‘‘(C) all other individuals related by blood

6 to the individual or the spouse or child de7 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B).

8 ‘‘(6) GENETIC INFORMATION.—The term ‘ge9 netic information’ means information about genes,

10 gene products, or inherited characteristics that may

11 derive from an individual or a family member of

12 such individual (including information about a re13 quest for or the receipt of genetic services by such

14 individual or family member of such individual).

15 ‘‘(7) GENETIC SERVICES.—The term ‘genetic

16 services’ means health services, including genetic

17 tests, provided to obtain, assess, or interpret genetic

18 information for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,

19 and for genetic education and counseling.

20 ‘‘(8) GENETIC TEST.—The term ‘genetic test’

21 means the analysis of human DNA, RNA, chro22 mosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites in order

23 to detect genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal

24 changes.

25 ‘‘(9) PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—
12

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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘predictive

2 genetic information’ means—

3 ‘‘(i) information about an individual’s

4 genetic tests;

5 ‘‘(ii) information about genetic tests

6 of family members of the individual; or

7 ‘‘(iii) information about the occur8 rence of a disease or disorder in family

9 members.

10 ‘‘(B) LIMITATIONS.—The term ‘predictive

11 genetic information’ shall not include—

12 ‘‘(i) information about the sex or age

13 of the individual;

14 ‘‘(ii) information about chemical,

15 blood, or urine analyses of the individual,

16 unless these analyses are genetic tests; or

17 ‘‘(iii) information about physical

18 exams of the individual, and other informa19 tion relevant to determining the current

20 health status of the individual.’’.

21 (f) AMENDMENT CONCERNING SUPPLEMENTAL EX22 CEPTED BENEFITS.—Section 732(c)(3) of the Employee

23 Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C.

24 1191a(c)(3)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, other than the

25 requirements of subsections (a)(1)(F), (b) (in cases relat-
13

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1 ing to genetic information or information about a request

2 for or the receipt of genetic services by an individual or

3 a family member of such individual), (c), (d), (e), (f) and

4 (g) of section 702 and section 714,’’ after ‘‘The require5 ments of this part’’.

6 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this

8 section, this section and the amendments made by

9 this section shall apply with respect to group health

10 plans for plan years beginning after October 1,

11 2000.

12 (2) SPECIAL RULE FOR COLLECTIVE BAR13 GAINING AGREEMENTS.—In the case of a group

14 health plan maintained pursuant to one or more col15 lective bargaining agreements between employee rep16 resentatives and one or more employers ratified be17 fore the date of the enactment of this Act, this sec18 tion and the amendments made by this section shall

19 not apply to plan years beginning before the later

20 of—

21 (A) the date on which the last of the col22 lective bargaining agreements relating to the

23 plan terminates (determined without regard to

24 any extension thereof agreed to after the date

25 of the enactment of this Act), or
14

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1 (B) October 1, 2000.

2 For purposes of subparagraph (A), any plan amend3 ment made pursuant to a collective bargaining

4 agreement relating to the plan which amends the

5 plan solely to conform to any requirement of the

6 amendments made by this section shall not be treat7 ed as a termination of such collective bargaining

8 agreement.

9 SEC. 102. AMENDMENTS TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE

10 ACT.

11 (a) AMENDMENTS RELATING TO THE GROUP MAR12 KET.—

13 (1) PROHIBITION OF HEALTH INSURANCE DIS14 CRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF PREDICTIVE GE15 NETIC INFORMATION OR GENETIC SERVICES.—

16 (A) NO ENROLLMENT RESTRICTION FOR

17 GENETIC SERVICES.—Section 2702(a)(1)(F) of

18 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.

19 300gg–1(a)(1)(F)) is amended by inserting be20 fore the period the following: ‘‘(or information

21 about a request for or the receipt of genetic

22 services by an individual or a family member of

23 such individual)’’.
15

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1 (B) NO DISCRIMINATION IN GROUP RATE

2 BASED ON PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMA3 TION.—

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 2 of part

5 A of title XXVII of the Public Health

6 Service (42 U.S.C. 300gg-4 et seq.) is

7 amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing:

9 ‘‘SEC. 2707. PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST

10 GROUPS ON THE BASIS OF PREDICTIVE GE11 NETIC INFORMATION.

12 ‘‘A group health plan, and a health insurance issuer

13 offering group health insurance coverage in connection

14 with a group health plan, shall not deny eligibility to a

15 group or adjust premium or contribution rates for a group

16 on the basis of predictive genetic information concerning

17 an individual in the group (or information about a request

18 for or the receipt of genetic services by such individual

19 or family member of such individual).’’.

20 (ii) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

21 (I) Section 2702(b)(2)(A) of the

22 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.

23 300gg–1(b)(2)(A)) is amended to read

24 as follows:
16

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1 ‘‘(A) to restrict the amount that an em2 ployer may be charged for coverage under a

3 group health plan, except as provided in section

4 2707; or’’.

5 (II) Section 2721(a) of the Pub6 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.

7 300gg–21(a)) is amended by inserting

8 ‘‘(other than subsections (a)(1)(F),

9 (b) (with respect to cases relating to

10 genetic information or information

11 about a request or receipt of genetic

12 services by an individual or family

13 member of such individual), (c), (d),

14 (e), (f), or (g) of section 2702 and

15 section 2707)’’ after ‘‘subparts 1 and

16 3’’.

17 (2) LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

18 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GE19 NETIC INFORMATION.—Section 2702 of the Public

20 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–1) is amended

21 by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(c) GENETIC TESTING.—

23 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON REQUESTING OR REQUIR24 ING GENETIC TESTING.—A group health plan, or a

25 health insurance issuer offering health insurance
17

•S 1322 IS

1 coverage in connection with a group health plan,

2 shall not request or require an individual or a family

3 member of such individual to undergo a genetic test.

4 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

5 this title shall be construed to limit the authority of

6 a health care professional, who is providing treat7 ment with respect to an individual and who is em8 ployed by a group health plan or a health insurance

9 issuer, to request that such individual or family

10 member of such individual undergo a genetic test.

11 Such a health care professional shall not require

12 that such individual or family member undergo a ge13 netic test.

14 ‘‘(d) COLLECTION OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR15 MATION.—Except as provided in subsections (f) and (g),

16 a group health plan, or a health insurance issuer offering

17 health insurance coverage in connection with a group

18 health plan, shall not request, require, collect, or purchase

19 predictive genetic information concerning an individual (or

20 information about a request for or the receipt of genetic

21 services by such individual or family member of such indi22 vidual).

23 ‘‘(e) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR24 MATION.—A group health plan, or a health insurance

25 issuer offering health insurance coverage in connection
18

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1 with a group health plan, shall not disclose predictive ge2 netic information about an individual (or information

3 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

4 such individual or family member of such individual) to—

5 ‘‘(1) any entity that is a member of the same

6 controlled group as such issuer or plan sponsor of

7 such group health plan;

8 ‘‘(2) any other group health plan or health in9 surance issuer or any insurance agent, third party

10 administrator, or other person subject to regulation

11 under State insurance laws;

12 ‘‘(3) the Medical Information Bureau or any

13 other person that collects, compiles, publishes, or

14 otherwise disseminates insurance information;

15 ‘‘(4) the individual’s employer or any plan spon16 sor; or

17 ‘‘(5) any other person the Secretary may speci18 fy in regulations.

19 ‘‘(f) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT FOR GENETIC

20 SERVICES.—

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to payment

22 for genetic services conducted concerning an indi23 vidual or the coordination of benefits, a group health

24 plan, or a health insurance issuer offering group

25 health insurance coverage in connection with a group
19

•S 1322 IS

1 health plan, may request that the individual provide

2 the plan or issuer with evidence that such services

3 were performed.

4 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

5 paragraph (1) shall be construed to—

6 ‘‘(A) permit a group health plan or health

7 insurance issuer to request (or require) the re8 sults of the services referred to in such para9 graph; or

10 ‘‘(B) require that a group health plan or

11 health insurance issuer make payment for serv12 ices described in such paragraph where the in13 dividual involved has refused to provide evi14 dence of the performance of such services pur15 suant to a request by the plan or issuer in ac16 cordance with such paragraph.

17 ‘‘(g) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT OF OTHER

18 CLAIMS.—With respect to the payment of claims for bene19 fits other than genetic services, a group health plan, or

20 a health insurance issuer offering group health insurance

21 coverage in connection with a group health plan, may re22 quest that an individual provide predictive genetic infor23 mation so long as such information—

24 ‘‘(1) is used solely for the payment of a claim;
20

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1 ‘‘(2) is limited to information that is directly re2 lated to and necessary for the payment of such claim

3 and the claim would otherwise be denied but for the

4 predictive genetic information; and

5 ‘‘(3) is used only by an individual (or individ6 uals) within such plan or issuer who needs access to

7 such information for purposes of payment of a

8 claim.

9 ‘‘(h) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—

10 ‘‘(1) COLLECTION OR DISCLOSURE AUTHORIZED

11 BY INDIVIDUAL.—The provisions of subsections (d)

12 (regarding collection) and (e) shall not apply to an

13 individual if the individual (or legal representative of

14 the individual) provides prior, knowing, voluntary,

15 and written authorization for the collection or disclo16 sure of predictive genetic information.

17 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE FOR HEALTH CARE TREAT18 MENT.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to

19 limit or restrict the disclosure of predictive genetic

20 information from a health care provider to another

21 health care provider for the purpose of providing

22 health care treatment to the individual involved.

23 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

24 ‘‘(1) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The term ‘con25 trolled group’ means any group treated as a single
21

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1 employer under subsections (b), (c), (m), or (o) of

2 section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

3 ‘‘(2) GROUP HEALTH PLAN, HEALTH INSUR4 ANCE ISSUER.—The terms ‘group health plan’ and

5 ‘health insurance issuer’ include a third party ad6 ministrator or other person acting for or on behalf

7 of such plan or issuer.’’.

8 (3) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2791(d) of the Pub9 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–91(d)) is

10 amended by adding at the end the following new

11 paragraphs:

12 ‘‘(15) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘family

13 member’ means with respect to an individual—

14 ‘‘(A) the spouse of the individual;

15 ‘‘(B) a dependent child of the individual,

16 including a child who is born to or placed for

17 adoption with the individual; and

18 ‘‘(C) all other individuals related by blood

19 to the individual or the spouse or child de20 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B).

21 ‘‘(16) GENETIC INFORMATION.—The term ‘ge22 netic information’ means information about genes,

23 gene products, or inherited characteristics that may

24 derive from an individual or a family member of

25 such individual (including information about a re-
22

•S 1322 IS

1 quest for or the receipt of genetic services by such

2 individual or family member of such individual).

3 ‘‘(17) GENETIC SERVICES.—The term ‘genetic

4 services’ means health services, including genetic

5 tests, provided to obtain, assess, or interpret genetic

6 information for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,

7 and for genetic education and counselling.

8 ‘‘(18) GENETIC TEST.—The term ‘genetic test’

9 means the analysis of human DNA, RNA, chro10 mosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites in order

11 to detect genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal

12 changes.

13 ‘‘(19) PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘predictive

15 genetic information’ means—

16 ‘‘(i) information about an individual’s

17 genetic tests;

18 ‘‘(ii) information about genetic tests

19 of family members of the individual; or

20 ‘‘(iii) information about the occur21 rence of a disease or disorder in family

22 members.

23 ‘‘(B) LIMITATIONS.—The term ‘predictive

24 genetic information’ shall not include—
23

•S 1322 IS

1 ‘‘(i) information about the sex or age

2 of the individual;

3 ‘‘(ii) information about chemical,

4 blood, or urine analyses of the individual,

5 unless these analyses are genetic tests; or

6 ‘‘(iii) information about physical

7 exams of the individual, and other informa8 tion relevant to determining the current

9 health status of the individual.’’.

10 (b) AMENDMENT RELATING TO THE INDIVIDUAL

11 MARKET.—The first subpart 3 of part B of title XXVII

12 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–51 et

13 seq.) is amended—

14 (1) by redesignating such subpart as subpart 2;

15 and

16 (2) by adding at the end the following:

17 ‘‘SEC. 2753. PROHIBITION OF HEALTH INSURANCE DIS18 CRIMINATION AGAINST INDIVIDUALS ON THE

19 BASIS OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMA20 TION.

21 ‘‘(a) IN ELIGIBILITY TO ENROLL.—A health insur22 ance issuer offering health insurance coverage in the indi23 vidual market shall not establish rules for eligibility to en24 roll in individual health insurance coverage that are based

25 on predictive genetic information concerning the individual
24

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1 (or information about a request for or the receipt of ge2 netic services by such individual or family member of such

3 individual).

4 ‘‘(b) IN PREMIUM RATES.—A health insurance issuer

5 offering health insurance coverage in the individual mar6 ket shall not adjust premium rates on the basis of pre7 dictive genetic information concerning an individual (or in8 formation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

9 services by such individual or family member of such indi10 vidual).

11 ‘‘SEC. 2754. LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

12 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PRE13 DICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.

14 ‘‘(a) GENETIC TESTING.—

15 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON REQUESTING OR REQUIR16 ING GENETIC TESTING.—A health insurance issuer

17 offering health insurance coverage in the individual

18 market shall not request or require an individual or

19 a family member of such individual to undergo a ge20 netic test.

21 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

22 this title shall be construed to limit the authority of

23 a health care professional, who is providing treat24 ment with respect to an individual and who is em25 ployed by a group health plan or a health insurance
25

•S 1322 IS

1 issuer, to request that such individual or family

2 member of such individual undergo a genetic test.

3 Such a health care professional shall not require

4 that such individual or family member undergo a ge5 netic test.

6 ‘‘(b) COLLECTION OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR7 MATION.—Except as provided in subsections (d) and (e),

8 a health insurance issuer offering health insurance cov9 erage in the individual market shall not request, require,

10 collect, or purchase predictive genetic information con11 cerning an individual (or information about a request for

12 or the receipt of genetic services by such individual or fam13 ily member of such individual).

14 ‘‘(c) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR15 MATION.—A health insurance issuer offering health insur16 ance coverage in the individual market shall not disclose

17 predictive genetic information about an individual (or in18 formation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

19 services by such individual or family member of such indi20 vidual) to—

21 ‘‘(1) any entity that is a member of the same

22 controlled group as such issuer or plan sponsor of

23 such group health plan;

24 ‘‘(2) any other group health plan or health in25 surance issuer or any insurance agent, third party
26

•S 1322 IS

1 administrator, or other person subject to regulation

2 under State insurance laws;

3 ‘‘(3) the Medical Information Bureau or any

4 other person that collects, compiles, publishes, or

5 otherwise disseminates insurance information;

6 ‘‘(4) the individual’s employer or any plan spon7 sor; or

8 ‘‘(5) any other person the Secretary may speci9 fy in regulations.

10 ‘‘(d) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT FOR GENETIC

11 SERVICES.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to payment

13 for genetic services conducted concerning an indi14 vidual or the coordination of benefits, a health insur15 ance issuer offering health insurance coverage in the

16 individual market may request that the individual

17 provide the plan or issuer with evidence that such

18 services were performed.

19 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

20 paragraph (1) shall be construed to—

21 ‘‘(A) permit a health insurance issuer to

22 request (or require) the results of the services

23 referred to in such paragraph; or

24 ‘‘(B) require that a health insurance issuer

25 make payment for services described in such
27

•S 1322 IS

1 paragraph where the individual involved has re2 fused to provide evidence of the performance of

3 such services pursuant to a request by the plan

4 or issuer in accordance with such paragraph.

5 ‘‘(e) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT OF OTHER

6 CLAIMS.—With respect to the payment of claims for bene7 fits other than genetic services, a health insurance issuer

8 offering health insurance coverage in the individual mar9 ket may request that an individual provide predictive ge10 netic information so long as such information—

11 ‘‘(1) is used solely for the payment of a claim;

12 ‘‘(2) is limited to information that is directly re13 lated to and necessary for the payment of such claim

14 and the claim would otherwise be denied but for the

15 predictive genetic information; and

16 ‘‘(3) is used only by an individual (or individ17 uals) within such plan or issuer who needs access to

18 such information for purposes of payment of a

19 claim.

20 ‘‘(f) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—

21 ‘‘(1) COLLECTION OR DISCLOSURE AUTHORIZED

22 BY INDIVIDUAL.—The provisions of subsections (c)

23 (regarding collection) and (d) shall not apply to an

24 individual if the individual (or legal representative of

25 the individual) provides prior, knowing, voluntary,
28

•S 1322 IS

1 and written authorization for the collection or disclo2 sure of predictive genetic information.

3 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE FOR HEALTH CARE TREAT4 MENT.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to

5 limit or restrict the disclosure of predictive genetic

6 information from a health care provider to another

7 health care provider for the purpose of providing

8 health care treatment to the individual involved.

9 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

10 ‘‘(1) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The term ‘con11 trolled group’ means any group treated as a single

12 employer under subsections (b), (c), (m), or (o) of

13 section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

14 ‘‘(2) GROUP HEALTH PLAN, HEALTH INSUR15 ANCE ISSUER.—The terms ‘group health plan’ and

16 ‘health insurance issuer’ include a third party ad17 ministrator or other person acting for or on behalf

18 of such plan or issuer.’’.

19 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—

20 (1) GROUP PLANS.—Section 2722 of the Public

21 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–22) is amend22 ed by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘(c) VIOLATION OF GENETIC DISCRIMINATION OR

24 GENETIC DISCLOSURE PROVISIONS.—In any action under

25 this section against any administrator of a group health
29

•S 1322 IS

1 plan, or health insurance issuer offering group health in2 surance coverage in connection with a group health plan

3 (including any third party administrator or other person

4 acting for or on behalf of such plan or issuer) alleging

5 a violation of subsections (a)(1)(F), (b) (with respect to

6 cases relating to genetic information or information about

7 a request or receipt of genetic services by an individual

8 or family member of such individual), (c), (d), (e), (f), or

9 (g) of section 2702 and section 2707 the court may award

10 any appropriate legal or equitable relief. Such relief may

11 include a requirement for the payment of attorney’s fees

12 and costs, including the costs of expert witnesses.

13 ‘‘(d) CIVIL PENALTY.—The monetary provisions of

14 section 308(b)(2)(C) of Public Law 101–336 (42 U.S.C.

15 12188(b)) shall apply for purposes of the Secretary en16 forcing the provisions referred to in subsection (c), except

17 that any such relief awarded shall be paid only into the

18 general fund of the Treasury.’’.

19 (2) INDIVIDUAL PLANS.—Section 2761 of the

20 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–45) is

21 amended by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(c) VIOLATION OF GENETIC DISCRIMINATION OR

23 GENETIC DISCLOSURE PROVISIONS.—In any action under

24 this section against any health insurance issuer offering

25 health insurance coverage in the individual market (in-
30

•S 1322 IS

1 cluding any other person acting for or on behalf of such

2 issuer) alleging a violation of section 2753 and 2754 the

3 court in which the action is commenced may award any

4 appropriate legal or equitable relief. Such relief may in5 clude a requirement for the payment of attorney’s fees and

6 costs, including the costs of expert witnesses.

7 ‘‘(d) CIVIL PENALTY.—The monetary provisions of

8 section 308(b)(2)(C) of Public Law 101–336 (42 U.S.C.

9 12188(b)) shall apply for purposes of the Secretary en10 forcing the provisions referred to in subsection (c), except

11 that any such relief awarded shall be paid only into the

12 general fund of the Treasury.’’.

13 (d) PREEMPTION.—

14 (1) GROUP MARKET.—Section 2723 of the Pub15 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–23) is

16 amended—

17 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting ‘‘or

18 (e)’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and

19 (B) by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE OF GENETIC INFORMA21 TION.—With respect to group health insurance coverage

22 offered by a health insurance issuer, the provisions of this

23 part relating to genetic information (including information

24 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

25 an individual or a family member of such individual) shall
31

•S 1322 IS

1 not be construed to supersede any provision of State law

2 which establishes, implements, or continues in effect a

3 standard, requirement, or remedy that more completely—

4 ‘‘(1) protects the confidentiality of genetic in5 formation (including information about a request for

6 or the receipt of genetic services by an individual or

7 a family member of such individual) or the privacy

8 of an individual or a family member of the individual

9 with respect to genetic information (including infor10 mation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

11 services by an individual or a family member of such

12 individual); or

13 ‘‘(2) prohibits discrimination on the basis of ge14 netic information than does this part.’’.

15 (2) INDIVIDUAL MARKET.—Section 2762 of the

16 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–46) is

17 amended—

18 (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘and ex19 cept as provided in subsection (c),’’ after ‘‘Sub20 ject to subsection (b),’’; and

21 (B) by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE OF GENETIC INFORMA23 TION.—With respect to individual health insurance cov24 erage offered by a health insurance issuer, the provisions

25 of this part (or part C insofar as it applies to this part)
32

•S 1322 IS

1 relating to genetic information (including information

2 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

3 an individual or a family member of such individual) shall

4 not be construed to supersede any provision of State law

5 (as defined in section 2723(d)) which establishes, imple6 ments, or continues in effect a standard, requirement, or

7 remedy that more completely—

8 ‘‘(1) protects the confidentiality of genetic in9 formation (including information about a request for

10 or the receipt of genetic services of an individual or

11 a family member of such individual) or the privacy

12 of an individual or a family member of the individual

13 with respect to genetic information (including infor14 mation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

15 services by an individual or a family member of such

16 individual) than does this part (or part C insofar as

17 it applies to this part); or

18 ‘‘(2) prohibits discrimination on the basis of ge19 netic information than does this part (or part C in20 sofar as it applies to this part).’’.

21 (e) ELIMINATION OF OPTION OF NON-FEDERAL

22 GOVERNMENTAL PLANS TO BE EXCEPTED FROM RE23 QUIREMENTS CONCERNING GENETIC INFORMATION.—

24 Section 2721(b)(2) of the Public Health Service Act (42

25 U.S. C. 300gg–21(b)(2)) is amended—
33

•S 1322 IS

1 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘If the

2 plan sponsor’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in

3 subparagraph (D), if the plan sponsor’’; and

4 (2) by adding at the end the following:

5 ‘‘(D) ELECTION NOT APPLICABLE TO RE6 QUIREMENTS CONCERNING GENETIC INFORMA7 TION.—The election described in subparagraph

8 (A) shall not be available with respect to the

9 provisions of subsections (a)(1)(F), (c), (d), (e),

10 (f), and (g) of section 2702 and section 2707,

11 and the provisions of section 2702(b) to the ex12 tent that they apply to genetic information (or

13 information about a request for or the receipt

14 of genetic services by an individual or a family

15 member of such individual).’’.

16 (f) AMENDMENT CONCERNING SUPPLEMENTAL EX17 CEPTED BENEFITS.—

18 (1) GROUP MARKET.—Section 2721(d)(3) of

19 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–

20 23(d)(3)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, other than the

21 requirements of subsections (a)(1)(F), (b) (in cases

22 relating to genetic information or information about

23 a request for or the receipt of genetic services by an

24 individual or a family member of such individual)),
34

•S 1322 IS

1 (c), (d), (e), (f) and (g) of section 2702 and section

2 2707,’’ after ‘‘The requirements of this part’’.

3 (2) INDIVIDUAL MARKET.—Section 2763(b) of

4 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg–

5 47(b)) is amended—

6 (A) by striking ‘‘The requirements of this

7 part’’ and inserting the following:

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), the requirements of this part’’; and

10 (B) by adding at the end the following:

11 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—The requirements of sec12 tions 2753 and 2754 shall apply to excepted benefits

13 described in section 2791(c)(4).’’.

14 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by

16 this section shall apply with respect to—

17 (A) group health plans, and health insur18 ance coverage offered in connection with group

19 health plans, for plan years beginning; and

20 (B) health insurance coverage offered,

21 sold, issued, renewed, in effect, or operated in

22 the individual market, after;

23 October 1, 2000.

24 (2) SPECIAL RULE FOR COLLECTIVE BAR25 GAINING AGREEMENTS.—In the case of a group
35

•S 1322 IS

1 health plan maintained pursuant to one or more col2 lective bargaining agreements between employee rep3 resentatives and one or more employers ratified be4 fore the date of the enactment of this Act, the

5 amendments made by this section shall not apply to

6 plan years beginning before the later of—

7 (A) the date on which the last of the col8 lective bargaining agreements relating to the

9 plan terminates (determined without regard to

10 any extension thereof agreed to after the date

11 of the enactment of this Act); or

12 (B) October 1, 2000.

13 For purposes of subparagraph (A), any plan amend14 ment made pursuant to a collective bargaining

15 agreement relating to the plan which amends the

16 plan solely to conform to any requirement of the

17 amendments made by this section shall not be treat18 ed as a termination of such collective bargaining

19 agreement.

20 SEC. 103. AMENDMENTS TO INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

21 1986.

22 (a) PROHIBITION OF HEALTH INSURANCE DISCRIMI23 NATION ON THE BASIS OF GENETIC SERVICES OR PRE24 DICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—
36

•S 1322 IS

1 (1) NO ENROLLMENT RESTRICTION FOR GE2 NETIC SERVICES.—Section 9802(a)(1)(F) of the In3 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by insert4 ing before the period ‘‘(or information about a re5 quest for or the receipt of genetic services by such

6 individual or family member of such individual)’’.

7 (2) NO DISCRIMINATION IN GROUP RATE BASED

8 ON PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter B of chap10 ter 100 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

11 is amended by adding at the end the following:

12 ‘‘SEC. 9813. PROHIBITING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST

13 GROUPS ON THE BASIS OF PREDICTIVE GE14 NETIC INFORMATION.

15 ‘‘A group health plan shall not deny eligibility to a

16 group or adjust premium or contribution rates for a group

17 on the basis of predictive genetic information concerning

18 an individual in the group (or information about a request

19 for or the receipt of genetic services by such individual

20 or family member of such individual).’’.

21 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

22 (i) Section 9802(b)(2)(A) of the Inter23 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to

24 read as follows:
37

•S 1322 IS

1 ‘‘(A) to restrict the amount that an em2 ployer may be charged for coverage under a

3 group health plan, except as provided in section

4 9813; or’’.

5 (ii) Section 9831(a) of the Internal

6 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by in7 serting ‘‘(other than subsections (a)(1)(F),

8 (b) (with respect to cases relating to ge9 netic information or information about a

10 request for or receipt of genetic services by

11 an individual or family member of such in12 dividual), (d) (e), (f), (g) or (h) of section

13 9802 or section 9813) after ‘‘chapter’’.

14 (b) LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

15 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC

16 INFORMATION.—Section 9802 of the Internal Revenue

17 Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing:

19 ‘‘(d) GENETIC TESTING.—

20 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON REQUESTING OR REQUIR21 ING GENETIC TESTING.—A group health plan shall

22 not request or require an individual or a family

23 member of such individual to undergo a genetic test.

24 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

25 this title shall be construed to limit the authority of
38

•S 1322 IS

1 a health care professional, who is providing treat2 ment with respect to an individual and who is em3 ployed by a group health plan, to request that such

4 individual or family member of such individual un5 dergo a genetic test. Such a health care professional

6 shall not require that such individual or family mem7 ber undergo a genetic test.

8 ‘‘(e) COLLECTION OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR9 MATION.—Except as provided in subsections (g) and (h),

10 a group health plan shall not request, require, collect, or

11 purchase predictive genetic information concerning an in12 dividual (or information about a request for or the receipt

13 of genetic services by such individual or family member

14 of such individual).

15 ‘‘(f) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR16 MATION.—A group health plan shall not disclose predictive

17 genetic information about an individual (or information

18 about a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

19 such individual or family member of such individual) to—

20 ‘‘(1) any entity that is a member of the same

21 controlled group as such issuer or plan sponsor of

22 such group health plan;

23 ‘‘(2) any other group health plan or health in24 surance issuer or any insurance agent, third party
39

•S 1322 IS

1 administrator, or other person subject to regulation

2 under State insurance laws;

3 ‘‘(3) the Medical Information Bureau or any

4 other person that collects, compiles, publishes, or

5 otherwise disseminates insurance information;

6 ‘‘(4) the individual’s employer or any plan spon7 sor; or

8 ‘‘(5) any other person the Secretary may speci9 fy in regulations.

10 ‘‘(g) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT FOR GENETIC

11 SERVICES.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to payment

13 for genetic services conducted concerning an indi14 vidual or the coordination of benefits, a group health

15 plan may request that the individual provide the

16 plan with evidence that such services were per17 formed.

18 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in

19 paragraph (1) shall be construed to—

20 ‘‘(A) permit a group health plan to request

21 (or require) the results of the services referred

22 to in such paragraph; or

23 ‘‘(B) require that a group health plan

24 make payment for services described in such

25 paragraph where the individual involved has re-
40

•S 1322 IS

1 fused to provide evidence of the performance of

2 such services pursuant to a request by the plan

3 in accordance with such paragraph.

4 ‘‘(h) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT OF OTHER

5 CLAIMS.—With respect to the payment of claims for bene6 fits other than genetic services, a group health plan may

7 request that an individual provide predictive genetic infor8 mation so long as such information—

9 ‘‘(1) is used solely for the payment of a claim;

10 ‘‘(2) is limited to information that is directly re11 lated to and necessary for the payment of such claim

12 and the claim would otherwise be denied but for the

13 predictive genetic information; and

14 ‘‘(3) is used only by an individual (or individ15 uals) within such plan or issuer who needs access to

16 such information for purposes of payment of a

17 claim.

18 ‘‘(i) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—

19 ‘‘(1) COLLECTION OR DISCLOSURE AUTHORIZED

20 BY INDIVIDUAL.—The provisions of subsections (e)

21 (regarding collection) and (f) shall not apply to an

22 individual if the individual (or legal representative of

23 the individual) provides prior, knowing, voluntary,

24 and written authorization for the collection or disclo25 sure of predictive genetic information.
41

•S 1322 IS

1 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE FOR HEALTH CARE TREAT2 MENT.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to

3 limit or restrict the disclosure of predictive genetic

4 information from a health care provider to another

5 health care provider for the purpose of providing

6 health care treatment to the individual involved.

7 ‘‘(j) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

8 ‘‘(1) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The term ‘con9 trolled group’ means any group treated as a single

10 employer under subsections (b), (c), (m), or (o) of

11 section 414.

12 ‘‘(2) GROUP HEALTH PLAN, HEALTH INSUR13 ANCE ISSUER.—The terms ‘group health plan’ and

14 ‘health insurance issuer’ include a third party ad15 ministrator or other person acting for or on behalf

16 of such plan or issuer.

17 ‘‘(k) VIOLATION OF GENETIC DISCRIMINATION OR

18 GENETIC DISCLOSURE PROVISIONS.—In any action under

19 this section against any administrator of a group health

20 plan (including any third party administrator or other per21 son acting for or on behalf of such plan) alleging a viola22 tion of subsection (a)(1)(F), (b) (with respect to cases re23 lating to genetic information or information about a re24 quest or receipt of genetic services by an individual or fam25 ily member of such individual), (d), (e), (f), (g) or (h) of
42

•S 1322 IS

1 this section or section 9813, the court may award any ap2 propriate legal or equitable relief. Such relief may include

3 a requirement for the payment of attorney’s fees and

4 costs, including the costs of expert witnesses.

5 ‘‘(l) CIVIL PENALTY.—The monetary provisions of

6 section 308(b)(2)(C) of Public Law 101–336 (42 U.S.C.

7 12188(b)) shall apply for purposes of the Secretary en8 forcing the provisions referred to in subsection (k), except

9 that any such relief awarded shall be paid only into the

10 general fund of the Treasury.’’.

11 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 9832(d) of the Internal

12 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end

13 the following:

14 ‘‘(6) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘family

15 member’ means with respect to an individual—

16 ‘‘(A) the spouse of the individual;

17 ‘‘(B) a dependent child of the individual,

18 including a child who is born to or placed for

19 adoption with the individual; and

20 ‘‘(C) all other individuals related by blood

21 to the individual or the spouse or child de22 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B).

23 ‘‘(7) GENETIC INFORMATION.—The term ‘ge24 netic information’ means information about genes,

25 gene products, or inherited characteristics that may
43

•S 1322 IS

1 derive from an individual or a family member of

2 such individual (including information about a re3 quest for or the receipt of genetic services by such

4 individual or family member of such individual).

5 ‘‘(8) GENETIC SERVICES.—The term ‘genetic

6 services’ means health services, including genetic

7 tests, provided to obtain, assess, or interpret genetic

8 information for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,

9 and for genetic education and counseling.

10 ‘‘(9) GENETIC TEST.—The term ‘genetic test’

11 means the analysis of human DNA, RNA, chro12 mosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites in order

13 to detect genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal

14 changes.

15 ‘‘(10) PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘predictive

17 genetic information’ means—

18 ‘‘(i) information about an individual’s

19 genetic tests;

20 ‘‘(ii) information about genetic tests

21 of family members of the individual; or

22 ‘‘(iii) information about the occur23 rence of a disease or disorder in family

24 members.
44

•S 1322 IS

1 ‘‘(B) LIMITATIONS.—The term ‘predictive

2 genetic information’ shall not include—

3 ‘‘(i) information about the sex or age

4 of the individual;

5 ‘‘(ii) information about chemical,

6 blood, or urine analyses of the individual,

7 unless these analyses are genetic tests; or

8 ‘‘(iii) information about physical

9 exams of the individual, and other informa10 tion relevant to determining the current

11 health status of the individual.’’.

12 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this

14 section, this section and the amendments made by

15 this section shall apply with respect to group health

16 plans for plan years beginning after October 1,

17 2000.

18 (2) SPECIAL RULE FOR COLLECTIVE BAR19 GAINING AGREEMENTS.—In the case of a group

20 health plan maintained pursuant to one or more col21 lective bargaining agreements between employee rep22 resentatives and one or more employers ratified be23 fore the date of the enactment of this Act, this sec24 tion and the amendments made by this section shall
45

•S 1322 IS

1 not apply to plan years beginning before the later

2 of—

3 (A) the date on which the last of the col4 lective bargaining agreements relating to the

5 plan terminates (determined without regard to

6 any extension thereof agreed to after the date

7 of the enactment of this Act), or

8 (B) October 1, 2000.

9 For purposes of subparagraph (A), any plan amend10 ment made pursuant to a collective bargaining

11 agreement relating to the plan which amends the

12 plan solely to conform to any requirement of the

13 amendments made by this section shall not be treat14 ed as a termination of such collective bargaining

15 agreement.

16 SEC. 104. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE XVIII OF THE SOCIAL SE17 CURITY ACT RELATING TO MEDIGAP.

18 (a) NONDISCRIMINATION.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1882(s)(2) of the

20 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ss(s)(2)) is

21 amended by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(E)(i) An issuer of a medicare supple23 mental policy shall not deny or condition the

24 issuance or effectiveness of the policy, and shall

25 not discriminate in the pricing of the policy (in-
46

•S 1322 IS

1 cluding the adjustment of premium rates) of an

2 eligible individual on the basis of predictive ge3 netic information concerning the individual (or

4 information about a request for, or the receipt

5 of, genetic services by such individual or family

6 member of such individual).

7 ‘‘(ii) For purposes of clause (i), the terms

8 ‘family member’, ‘genetic services’, and ‘pre9 dictive genetic information’ shall have the

10 meanings given such terms in subsection (v).’’.

11 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made

12 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to a policy

13 for policy years beginning after October 1, 2000.

14 (b) LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

15 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC

16 INFORMATION.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1882 of the Social

18 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ss) is amended by add19 ing at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(v) LIMITATIONS ON GENETIC TESTING AND ON

21 COLLECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC

22 INFORMATION.—

23 ‘‘(1) GENETIC TESTING.—

24 ‘‘(A) LIMITATION ON REQUESTING OR RE25 QUIRING GENETIC TESTING.—An issuer of a
47

•S 1322 IS

1 medicare supplemental policy shall not request

2 or require an individual or a family member of

3 such individual to undergo a genetic test.

4 ‘‘(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing

5 in this title shall be construed to limit the au6 thority of a health care professional, who is pro7 viding treatment with respect to an individual

8 and who is employed by an issuer of a medicare

9 supplemental policy, to request that such indi10 vidual or family member of such individual un11 dergo a genetic test. Such a health care profes12 sional shall not require that such individual or

13 family member undergo a genetic test.

14 ‘‘(2) COLLECTION OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC IN15 FORMATION.—Except as provided in paragraphs (4)

16 and (5), an issuer of a medicare supplemental policy

17 shall not request, require, collect, or purchase pre18 dictive genetic information concerning an individual

19 (or information about a request for or the receipt of

20 genetic services by such individual or family member

21 of such individual).

22 ‘‘(3) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC IN23 FORMATION.—An issuer of a medicare supplemental

24 policy shall not disclose predictive genetic informa25 tion about an individual (or information about a re-
48

•S 1322 IS

1 quest for or the receipt of genetic services by such

2 individual or family member of such individual) to—

3 ‘‘(A) any entity that is a member of the

4 same controlled group as such issuer;

5 ‘‘(B) any issuer of a medicare supple6 mental policy, group health plan or health in7 surance issuer, or any insurance agent, third

8 party administrator, or other person subject to

9 regulation under State insurance laws;

10 ‘‘(C) the Medical Information Bureau or

11 any other person that collects, compiles, pub12 lishes, or otherwise disseminates insurance in13 formation;

14 ‘‘(D) the individual’s employer or any plan

15 sponsor; or

16 ‘‘(E) any other person the Secretary may

17 specify in regulations.

18 ‘‘(4) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT FOR GE19 NETIC SERVICES.—

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to pay21 ment for genetic services conducted concerning

22 an individual or the coordination of benefits, an

23 issuer of a medicare supplemental policy may

24 request that the individual provide the issuer
49

•S 1322 IS

1 with evidence that such services were per2 formed.

3 ‘‘(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing

4 in subparagraph (A) shall be construed to—

5 ‘‘(i) permit an issuer to request (or

6 require) the results of the services referred

7 to in such subparagraph; or

8 ‘‘(ii) require that an issuer make pay9 ment for services described in such sub10 paragraph where the individual involved

11 has refused to provide evidence of the per12 formance of such services pursuant to a re13 quest by the issuer in accordance with such

14 subparagraph.

15 ‘‘(5) INFORMATION FOR PAYMENT OF OTHER

16 CLAIMS.—With respect to the payment of claims for

17 benefits other than genetic services, an issuer of a

18 medicare supplemental policy may request that an

19 individual provide predictive genetic information so

20 long as such information—

21 ‘‘(A) is used solely for the payment of a

22 claim;

23 ‘‘(B) is limited to information that is di24 rectly related to and necessary for the payment

25 of such claim and the claim would otherwise be
50

•S 1322 IS

1 denied but for the predictive genetic informa2 tion; and

3 ‘‘(C) is used only by an individual (or indi4 viduals) within such issuer who needs access to

5 such information for purposes of payment of a

6 claim.

7 ‘‘(6) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—

8 ‘‘(A) COLLECTION OR DISCLOSURE AU9 THORIZED BY INDIVIDUAL.—The provisions of

10 paragraphs (2) (regarding collection) and (3)

11 shall not apply to an individual if the individual

12 (or legal representative of the individual) pro13 vides prior, knowing, voluntary, and written au14 thorization for the collection or disclosure of

15 predictive genetic information.

16 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE FOR HEALTH CARE

17 TREATMENT.—Nothing in this section shall be

18 construed to limit or restrict the disclosure of

19 predictive genetic information from a health

20 care provider to another health care provider

21 for the purpose of providing health care treat22 ment to the individual involved.

23 ‘‘(7) VIOLATION OF GENETIC DISCRIMINATION

24 OR GENETIC DISCLOSURE PROVISIONS.—In any ac25 tion under this subsection against any administrator
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1 of a medicare supplemental policy (including any

2 third party administrator or other person acting for

3 or on behalf of such policy) alleging a violation of

4 this subsection, the court may award any appro5 priate legal or equitable relief. Such relief may in6 clude a requirement for the payment of attorney’s

7 fees and costs, including the costs of expert wit8 nesses.

9 ‘‘(8) CIVIL PENALTY.—The monetary provisions

10 of section 308(b)(2)(C) of Public Law 101–336 (42

11 U.S.C. 12188(b)) shall apply for purposes of the

12 Secretary enforcing the provisions of this subsection,

13 except that any such relief awarded shall be paid

14 only into the general fund of the Treasury.

15 ‘‘(9) SPECIAL RULE IN CASE OF GENETIC IN16 FORMATION.—This subsection (relating to genetic

17 information or information about a request for, or

18 the receipt of, genetic services by an individual or a

19 family member of such individual) shall not be con20 strued to supersede any provision of State law which

21 establishes, implements, or continues in effect a

22 standard, requirement, or remedy that more

23 completely—

24 ‘‘(A) protects the confidentiality of genetic

25 information (including information about a re-
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1 quest for, or the receipt of, genetic services by

2 an individual or a family member of such indi3 vidual) or the privacy of an individual or a fam4 ily member of the individual with respect to ge5 netic information (including information about

6 a request for, or the receipt of, genetic services

7 by an individual or a family member of such in8 dividual) than does this subsection; or

9 ‘‘(B) prohibits discrimination on the basis

10 of genetic information than does this sub11 section.

12 ‘‘(10) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:

13 ‘‘(A) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The term

14 ‘controlled group’ means any group treated as

15 a single employer under subsection (b), (c),

16 (m), or (o) of section 414 of the Internal Rev17 enue Code of 1986.

18 ‘‘(B) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘family

19 member’ means with respect to an individual—

20 ‘‘(i) the spouse of the individual;

21 ‘‘(ii) a dependent child of the indi22 vidual, including a child who is born to or

23 placed for adoption with the individual;

24 and
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1 ‘‘(iii) all other individuals related by

2 blood to the individual or the spouse or

3 child described in clause (i) or (ii).

4 ‘‘(C) GENETIC INFORMATION.—The term

5 ‘genetic information’ means information about

6 genes, gene products, or inherited characteris7 tics that may derive from an individual or a

8 family member of such individual (including in9 formation about a request for, or the receipt of,

10 genetic services by such individual or family

11 member of such individual).

12 ‘‘(D) GENETIC SERVICES.—The term ‘ge13 netic services’ means health services, including

14 genetic tests, provided to obtain, assess, or in15 terpret genetic information for diagnostic and

16 therapeutic purposes, and for genetic education

17 and counseling.

18 ‘‘(E) GENETIC TEST.—The term ‘genetic

19 test’ means the analysis of human DNA, RNA,

20 chromosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites

21 in order to detect genotypes, mutations, or

22 chromosomal changes.

23 ‘‘(F) ISSUER OF A MEDICARE SUPPLE24 MENTAL POLICY.—The term ‘issuer of a medi25 care supplemental policy’ includes a third-party
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1 administrator or other person acting for or on

2 behalf of such issuer.

3 ‘‘(G) PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMA4 TION.—

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘pre6 dictive genetic information’ means—

7 ‘‘(I) information about an indi8 vidual’s genetic tests;

9 ‘‘(II) information about genetic

10 tests of family members of the indi11 vidual; or

12 ‘‘(III) information about the oc13 currence of a disease or disorder in

14 family members.

15 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATIONS.—The term ‘pre16 dictive genetic information’ shall not

17 include—

18 ‘‘(I) information about the sex or

19 age of the individual;

20 ‘‘(II) information about chemical,

21 blood, or urine analyses of the indi22 vidual, unless these analyses are ge23 netic tests; or

24 ‘‘(III) information about physical

25 exams of the individual, and other in-
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1 formation relevant to determining the

2 current health status of the indi3 vidual.’’.

4 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section

5 1882(o) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

6 1395ss(o)) is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing:

8 ‘‘(4) The issuer of the medicare supplemental

9 policy complies with subsection (s)(2)(E) and sub10 section (v).’’.

11 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made

12 by this subsection shall apply with respect to an

13 issuer of a medicare supplemental policy for policy

14 years beginning after October 1, 2000.

15 (c) TRANSITION PROVISIONS.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary of Health

17 and Human Services identifies a State as requiring

18 a change to its statutes or regulations to conform its

19 regulatory program to the changes made by this sec20 tion, the State regulatory program shall not be con21 sidered to be out of compliance with the require22 ments of section 1882 of the Social Security Act due

23 solely to failure to make such change until the date

24 specified in paragraph (4).
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1 (2) NAIC STANDARDS.—If, not later than June

2 30, 2000, the National Association of Insurance

3 Commissioners (in this subsection referred to as the

4 ‘‘NAIC’’) modifies its NAIC Model Regulation relat5 ing to section 1882 of the Social Security Act (re6 ferred to in such section as the 1991 NAIC Model

7 Regulation, as subsequently modified) to conform to

8 the amendments made by this section, such revised

9 regulation incorporating the modifications shall be

10 considered to be the applicable NAIC model regula11 tion (including the revised NAIC model regulation

12 and the 1991 NAIC Model Regulation) for the pur13 poses of such section.

14 (3) SECRETARY STANDARDS.—If the NAIC

15 does not make the modifications described in para16 graph (2) within the period specified in such para17 graph, the Secretary of Health and Human Services

18 shall, not later than October 1, 2000, make the

19 modifications described in such paragraph and such

20 revised regulation incorporating the modifications

21 shall be considered to be the appropriate regulation

22 for the purposes of such section.

23 (4) DATE SPECIFIED.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B), the date specified in this paragraph

3 for a State is the earlier of—

4 (i) the date the State changes its stat5 utes or regulations to conform its regu6 latory program to the changes made by

7 this section, or

8 (ii) October 1, 2000.

9 (B) ADDITIONAL LEGISLATIVE ACTION RE10 QUIRED.—In the case of a State which the Sec11 retary identifies as—

12 (i) requiring State legislation (other

13 than legislation appropriating funds) to

14 conform its regulatory program to the

15 changes made in this section, but

16 (ii) having a legislature which is not

17 scheduled to meet in 2000 in a legislative

18 session in which such legislation may be

19 considered,

20 the date specified in this paragraph is the first

21 day of the first calendar quarter beginning after

22 the close of the first legislative session of the

23 State legislature that begins on or after July 1,

24 2000. For purposes of the previous sentence, in

25 the case of a State that has a 2-year legislative
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1 session, each year of such session shall be

2 deemed to be a separate regular session of the

3 State legislature.

4 TITLE II—PROHIBITION OF EM5 PLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION

6 ON THE BASIS OF PRE7 DICTIVE GENETIC INFORMA8 TION

9 SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS.

10 In this title:

11 (1) EMPLOYEE; EMPLOYER; EMPLOYMENT

12 AGENCY; LABOR ORGANIZATION; MEMBER.—The

13 terms ‘‘employee’’, ‘‘employer’’, ‘‘employment agen14 cy’’, and ‘‘labor organization’’ have the meanings

15 given such terms in section 701 of the Civil Rights

16 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e), except that the

17 terms ‘‘employee’’ and ‘‘employer’’ shall also include

18 the meanings given such terms in section 717 of the

19 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16). The

20 terms ‘‘employee’’ and ‘‘member’’ include an appli21 cant for employment and an applicant for member22 ship in a labor organization, respectively.

23 (2) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘‘family mem24 ber’’ means with respect to an individual—

25 (A) the spouse of the individual;
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1 (B) a dependent child of the individual, in2 cluding a child who is born to or placed for

3 adoption with the individual; and

4 (C) all other individuals related by blood to

5 the individual or the spouse or child described

6 in subparagraph (A) or (B).

7 (3) GENETIC MONITORING.—The term ‘‘genetic

8 monitoring’’ means the periodic examination of em9 ployees to evaluate acquired modifications to their

10 genetic material, such as chromosomal damage or

11 evidence of increased occurrence of mutations, that

12 may have developed in the course of employment due

13 to exposure to toxic substances in the workplace, in

14 order to identify, evaluate, and respond to the ef15 fects of or control adverse environmental exposures

16 in the workplace.

17 (4) GENETIC SERVICES.—The term ‘‘genetic

18 services’’ means health services, including genetic

19 tests, provided to obtain, assess, or interpret genetic

20 information for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes,

21 and for genetic education and counseling.

22 (5) GENETIC TEST.—The term ‘‘genetic test’’

23 means the analysis of human DNA, RNA, chro24 mosomes, proteins, and certain metabolites in order
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1 to detect genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal

2 changes.

3 (6) PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMATION.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘predictive

5 genetic information’’ means—

6 (i) information about an individual’s

7 genetic tests;

8 (ii) information about genetic tests of

9 family members of the individual; or

10 (iii) information about the occurrence

11 of a disease or disorder in family members.

12 (B) LIMITATIONS.—The term ‘‘predictive

13 genetic information’’ shall not include—

14 (i) information about the sex or age of

15 the individual;

16 (ii) information about chemical, blood,

17 or urine analyses of the individual, unless

18 these analyses are genetic tests; or

19 (iii) information about physical exams

20 of the individual, and other information

21 relevant to determining the current health

22 status of the individual.

23 SEC. 202. EMPLOYER PRACTICES.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—It shall be an unlawful employ25 ment practice for an employer—
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1 (1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any

2 individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any

3 individual with respect to the compensation, terms,

4 conditions, or privileges of employment of the indi5 vidual, because of predictive genetic information

6 with respect to the individual (or information about

7 a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

8 such individual or family member of such individual;

9 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify the employees

10 of the employer in any way that would deprive or

11 tend to deprive any individual of employment oppor12 tunities or otherwise adversely affect the status of

13 the individual as an employee, because of predictive

14 genetic information with respect to the individual, or

15 information about a request for or the receipt of ge16 netic services by such individual or family member

17 of such individual; or

18 (3) to request, require, collect or purchase pre19 dictive genetic information with respect to an indi20 vidual or a family member of the individual except—

21 (A) where used for genetic monitoring of

22 biological effects of toxic substances in the

23 workplace, but only if—
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1 (i) the employee has provided prior,

2 knowing, voluntary, and written authoriza3 tion;

4 (ii) the employee is informed of indi5 vidual monitoring results;

6 (iii) the monitoring conforms to any

7 genetic monitoring regulations that may be

8 promulgated by the Secretary of Labor

9 pursuant to the Occupational Safety and

10 Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 651 et

11 seq.) or the Federal Mine Safety and

12 Health Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 801 et

13 seq.); and

14 (iv) the employer, excluding any li15 censed health care professional that is in16 volved in the genetic monitoring program,

17 receives the results of the monitoring only

18 in aggregate terms that do not disclose the

19 identity of specific employees; or

20 (B) where genetic services are offered by

21 the employer and the employee provides prior,

22 knowing, voluntary, and written authorization,

23 and only the employee or family member of

24 such employee receives the results of such serv25 ices.
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1 (b) LIMITATION.—In the case of predictive genetic in2 formation to which subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection

3 (a)(3) applies, such information may not be used in viola4 tion of paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a).

5 SEC. 203. EMPLOYMENT AGENCY PRACTICES.

6 It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an

7 employment agency—

8 (1) to fail or refuse to refer for employment, or

9 otherwise to discriminate against, any individual be10 cause of predictive genetic information with respect

11 to the individual (or information about a request for

12 or the receipt of genetic services by such individual

13 or family member of such individual);

14 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify individuals or

15 fail or refuse to refer for employment any individual

16 in any way that would deprive or tend to deprive any

17 individual of employment opportunities or would

18 limit the employment opportunities or otherwise ad19 versely affect the status of the individual as an em20 ployee, because of predictive genetic information

21 with respect to the individual (or information about

22 a request for or the receipt of genetic services by

23 such individual or family member of such indi24 vidual);
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1 (3) to request, require, collect or purchase pre2 dictive genetic information with respect to an indi3 vidual (or information about a request for or the re4 ceipt of genetic services by such individual or family

5 member of such individual); or

6 (4) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to

7 discriminate against an individual in violation of this

8 title.

9 SEC. 204. LABOR ORGANIZATION PRACTICES.

10 It shall be an unlawful employment practice for a

11 labor organization—

12 (1) to exclude or to expel from the membership

13 of the organization, or otherwise to discriminate

14 against, any individual because of predictive genetic

15 information with respect to the individual (or infor16 mation about a request for or the receipt of genetic

17 services by such individual or family member of such

18 individual);

19 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify the members

20 of the organization, or fail or refuse to refer for em21 ployment any individual, in any way that would de22 prive or tend to deprive any individual of employ23 ment opportunities, or would limit the employment

24 opportunities or otherwise adversely affect the status

25 of the individual as an employee, because of pre-
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1 dictive genetic information with respect to the indi2 vidual (or information about a request for or the re3 ceipt of genetic services by such individual or family

4 member of such individual);

5 (3) to request, require, collect or purchase pre6 dictive genetic information with respect to an indi7 vidual (or information about a request for or the re8 ceipt of genetic services by such individual or family

9 member of such individual); or

10 (4) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to

11 discriminate against an individual in violation of this

12 title.

13 SEC. 205. TRAINING PROGRAMS.

14 It shall be an unlawful employment practice for any

15 employer, labor organization, or joint labor-management

16 committee controlling apprenticeship or other training or

17 retraining, including on-the-job training programs—

18 (1) to discriminate against any individual be19 cause of predictive genetic information with respect

20 to the individual (or information about a request for

21 or the receipt of genetic services by such individual),

22 in admission to, or employment in, any program es23 tablished to provide apprenticeship or other training

24 or retraining;
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1 (2) to limit, segregate, or classify the members

2 of the organization, or fail or refuse to refer for em3 ployment any individual, in any way that would de4 prive or tend to deprive any individual of employ5 ment opportunities, or would limit the employment

6 opportunities or otherwise adversely affect the status

7 of the individual as an employee, because of pre8 dictive genetic information with respect to the indi9 vidual (or information about a request for or receipt

10 of genetic services by such individual or family mem11 ber of such individual);

12 (3) to request, require, collect or purchase pre13 dictive genetic information with respect to an indi14 vidual (or information about a request for or receipt

15 of genetic services by such individual or family mem16 ber of such individual); or

17 (4) to cause or attempt to cause an employer to

18 discriminate against an individual in violation of this

19 title.

20 SEC. 206. MAINTENANCE AND DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE

21 GENETIC INFORMATION.

22 (a) MAINTENANCE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFOR23 MATION.—If an employer possesses predictive genetic in24 formation about an employee (or information about a re25 quest for or receipt of genetic services by such employee
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1 or family member of such employee), such information

2 shall be treated or maintained as part of the employee’s

3 confidential medical records.

4 (b) DISCLOSURE OF PREDICTIVE GENETIC INFORMA5 TION.—An employer shall not disclose predictive genetic

6 information (or information about a request for or receipt

7 of genetic services by such employee or family member of

8 such employee) except—

9 (1) to the employee who is the subject of the in10 formation at the request of the employee;

11 (2) to an occupational or other health re12 searcher if the research is conducted in compliance

13 with the regulations and protections provided for

14 under part 46 of title 45, Code of Federal Regula15 tions;

16 (3) under legal compulsion of a Federal court

17 order, except that if the court order was secured

18 without the knowledge of the individual to whom the

19 information refers, the employer shall provide the in20 dividual with adequate notice to challenge the court

21 order unless the court order also imposes confiden22 tiality requirements; and

23 (4) to government officials who are inves24 tigating compliance with this Act if the information

25 is relevant to the investigation.
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1 SEC. 207. CIVIL ACTION.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—One or more employees, members

3 of a labor organization, or participants in training pro4 grams may bring an action in a Federal or State court

5 of competent jurisdiction against an employer, employ6 ment agency, labor organization, or joint labor-manage7 ment committee or training program who commits a viola8 tion of this title.

9 (b) ENFORCEMENT BY THE EQUAL EMPLOYMENT

10 OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The powers, remedies, and

12 procedures set forth in sections 705, 706, 707, 709,

13 710, and 717 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42

14 U.S.C. 2000e–4, 2000e–5, 2000e–6, 2000e–8,

15 2000e–9, and 2000e–16) shall be the powers, rem16 edies, and procedures provided to the Equal Employ17 ment Opportunity Commission to enforce this title.

18 The Commission may promulgate regulations to im19 plement these powers, remedies, and procedures.

20 (2) EXHAUSTION OF REMEDIES.—Nothing in

21 this subsection shall be construed to require that an

22 individual exhaust the administrative remedies avail23 able through the Equal Employment Opportunity

24 Commission prior to commencing a civil action

25 under this section, except that if an individual files

26 a charge of discrimination with the Commission that
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1 alleges a violation of this title, the individual shall

2 exhaust the administrative remedies available

3 through the Commission prior to commencing a civil

4 action under this section.

5 (c) REMEDY.—A Federal or State court may award

6 any appropriate legal or equitable relief under this section.

7 Such relief may include a requirement for the payment

8 of attorney’s fees and costs, including the costs of experts.

9 SEC. 208. CONSTRUCTION.

10 Nothing in this title shall be construed to—

11 (1) limit the rights or protections of an indi12 vidual under the Americans with Disabilities Act of

13 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), including coverage

14 afforded to individuals under section 102 of such

15 Act;

16 (2) limit the rights or protections of an indi17 vidual under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29

18 U.S.C. 701 et seq.);

19 (3) limit the rights or protections of an indi20 vidual under any other Federal or State statute that

21 provides equal or greater protection to an individual

22 than the rights accorded under this Act;

23 (4) apply to the Armed Forces Repository of

24 Specimen Samples for the Identification of Remains;

25 or
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1 (5) limit the statutory or regulatory authority

2 of the Occupational Safety and Health Administra3 tion or the Mine Safety and Health Administration

4 to promulgate or enforce workplace safety and

5 health laws and regulations.

6 SEC. 209. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

7 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

8 as may be necessary to carry out this title.

9 SEC. 210. EFFECTIVE DATE.

10 This title shall become effective on October 1, 2000.

Æ