German parliament approves bill limiting genetic testing News
German parliament approves bill limiting genetic testing

[JURIST] The Bundestag [official website, in German], the lower house of the German parliament, approved a bill [text, PDF; bill materials, both in German] Friday restricting the use of genetic testing on humans. Specific provisions of the legislation, also know as GenDG [bill backgrounder, in German], include requiring a person to consent and to consult a doctor before testing takes place, requiring both the mother and father to consent to a paternity test before it is performed, and preventing employers and insurance companies from requiring genetic testing except in specific circumstances. Germany's Health Minister Ulla Schmidt [official website, in German] praised the passage of the legislation, saying [statement text, in German] the bill achieves necessary protection for individuals by establishing mandatory rules and high hurdles for genetic studies. According to Schmidt's statement, the legislation does not require approval by the Bundesrat [official website, in German], Germany's upper house.

A genetic testing bill had been debated in Germany for over 10 years [DW report] because of the controversy over ethical issues. The legislation is similar to a US law approved [JURIST report] in 2008 by then- president George W. Bush, which was aimed at preventing employers and health insurers from discriminating against people who have a genetic predisposition to disease. Under the law, employers are barred from basing hiring and firing decisions on genetic risk or predisposition, while health insurers would not be permitted to deny coverage based on genetic information.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Indian National Congress founded

The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded on December 28, 1885 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. In subsequent decades, the so-called Congress Party would advocate for Indian independence from the UK, which was eventually achieved in 1947. The first Prime Minister of independent India, Jawaharlal Nehru, was elected as a member of the INC. Learn more about the history and founding of the Indian National Congress.

Congress recognized Pledge of Allegiance

On December 28, 1945, Congress officially recognized the Pledge of Allegiance and encouraged its recitation in schools. The Pledge was supposedly written in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, a Baptist minister, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. The words “under God” were added by Congress in 1954. The revised version of the Pledge was the subject of litigation before the United States Supreme Court originally brought by Michael Newdow, a parent who unsuccessfully objected to his daughter's school district policy requiring daily recitation of the Pledge. The court ruled that Newdow had no standing.

Nepal ends monarchy, establishes republic

On December 28, 2007, the Kingdom of Nepal's interim parliament ended the country's monarchy and established the Republic of Nepal. Free elections were held on April 10 of the following year to elect a Constituent Assembly.

Learn more about the rise of democracy in Nepal.