States jump into the act

WASHINGTON - Last September, the Biotechnology Industry Organization managed to persuade New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman to veto a bill on genetic privacy after the legislature had passed it unanimously. The biotech industry was concerned that a provision granting intellectual property rights to genetic information to individuals could hinder biomedical research (see BioCentury Sept. 23, 1996).The intellectual property provisions were removed and the genetic privacy legislation signed into law

If the number and variety of bills filed in January are any indication, this year the industry may have many similar situations on its hands. At least 25 bills on genetic testing and privacy have been introduced in 12 states, and many contain provisions that could limit biomedical research...