Text of Proposed EEOC Regulations on GINA Now Available

UPDATED 3/2/09 with New Link to Proposed Regulations

The text of the proposed new regulations on GINA have finally trickled out (you can download a copy here). 

Ross Runkel (whose stakes a claim to being "First in Employment Law") finally tracked it down earlier today.

It’s a 58-page document though much of what it contains has been discussed in previous posts here and here. Here are a few items that haven’t been touched on before

• The definition of "employee" also covers former employees; this allows individuals who have been fired to raise discrimination and retaliation claims.  (Section 1635.2)
• The EEOC seems particularly interested in comment on six terms that have not been used previously in employment law context (at least not with any frequency). These include: "Family member", "Family medical history", "Genetic information", "Genetic Monitoring", "Genetic Services", and "Genetic Test".  (Section 1635.3)
• The regulations emphasize that although employers have 5 exceptions to the general rule that they may not acquire genetic information, these exceptions still do not allow an employer to discriminate by using such genetic information. (Section 1635.8)

Expect there to be more analysis in weeks to come. The comment period will end at the end of April 2009.  After that, expect the EEOC to release final regulations in the summer of 2009.