Advocacy
advocacy in action
FORCE Volunteers join thousands of other walkers in the first Gynecological Cancer Foundation Walk to End Women's Cancer weekend in DC.
FORCE would like to thank the GCF for inviting use to participate in this inaugural event. We would like to give special thanks to our DC Outreach Group, and our volunteers who traveled from around the country to attend and walk with FORCE.
GINA Action
FORCE has added our signature to a letter drafted by the Genetic Alliance and addressed to the Secretaries of HHS, Treasury and Labor, addressing comments they have made about delaying aspects of GINA's implementation.
The letter states, "Any delay in implementation would continue to allow employers to inquire about employees’ private genetic information or their families’ medical history, while penalizing employees who choose to keep that information private; any such exemption would create a loophole to significantly weaken the protections afforded to employees and the American people under GINA. We strongly oppose all proposals to weaken the rule or stop its prompt implementation."
Direct to Consumer Marketing
On October 9th, FORCE DC Outreach Coordinator, Lisa Schlager appeared before the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Genetics, Health, and Society (SACGHS) to testify on behalf of FORCE about the harmful effects of direct-to-consumer marketing of genetic tests on our community.
Download a copy of her comments
FORCE at the White House
Lisa
Schlager, Washington DC outreach coordinator attended a special reception
at the White House hosted by Michelle Obama in recognition of Breast Cancer
Awareness month. Lisa represented FORCE and joined dignitaries such as
Nancy Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen and Congresswoman Deborah Wasserman-Schultz,
author of the EARLY Act.
(Photo: Congresswoman Wasserman-Schultz with Lisa Schlager)
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA)
GINA was signed into law on May 21, 2008. This legislation is federal legislation that prohibits health insurance and employment discrimination on the basis of genetic information or a genetic test result.
FORCE worked tirelessly with the Coalition for Genetic Fairness in order to assure the passage of this important bill. The coalition is composed of nonprofit organizations, professional societies, and corporations dedicated to the principle that people should not be discriminated against based on a genetic predisposition to or family history of disease.