Create an Employee DNA Databank for Epigenetic Research

The federal government represents the largest body of individuals within the same health maintenance framework in the western world. The Administration's emphasis on digital medical records and 'Health IT' can easily be taken One Small Step further with the comprehensive personal genome sequencing of every federal employee, and the use of this database by the NIH in its ongoing quest to understand the epigenetic factors underlying many diseases. Decoding the Human Genome was the first step, which taught us that the role of genetics in health is far more complex than previously imagined. Recent discovery of the sixth human nucleotide proves that only through the accumulation of a genome library of massive numbers of people - correlated with their medical histories and responses to treatment - can the most important secrets of diseases (and aging) be understood well enough to permit universally effective cures to be developed. The potential cures which the NIH and other medical researchers worldwide could develop from the analysis of this data is of incalculable value. Not only would the addition of personal genomes to the federal personnel medical records be of immense benefit to federal employees (particularly in their later years), the federal commitment to do so would drive down the cost of practical personal gene sequencing by orders of magnitude, making it available for everyone.

Vote Activity Show