Genetics
Press Releases
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May 06, 2014
Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom (CCHF, www.cchfreedom.org) released the following statement after the Minnesota State House voted 69-58 yesterday to repeal genetic privacy for newborns and allow the state to collect and store newborn DNA without parental consent.
Press Releases
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March 24, 2014
ST. PAUL, Minn.—Minnesota State House and Senate committees have passed a controversial bill on genetic privacy that would strip parents of initial right of consent in having their baby’s DNA researched and stored indefinitely.
Press Releases
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August 21, 2013
Today, Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom is releasing the findings of one of its most important works to date. For the past eight years, CCHF has been researching health departments in all 50 states to find out how they use funding from the federal government to obtain and store citizens’ private medical information—in most cases, without patients’ consent.
How do you feel about Angelina Jolie's decision? On Monday, The New York Times published her opinion piece called, "My Medical Choice." Angelina, the popular 37-year-old actress, chose to have a double mastectomy. After three months of medical procedures to remove her breasts and perform reconstructive surgery with implants, she wrote about her prophylactic decision.
This is a list of all the data the MN Department of Health collects and how they use it.
CCHF President, Twila Brase, was published in the Pioneer Press on April 17, 2013 regarding legislation in the Minnesota House and Senate that would grant authority for DNA and personal medical information to be collected, stored and used for research WITHOUT individual consent. It has now been APPROVED by the Senate but still will need to be heard by the House before it can go to the Governor. Protect your Privacy! Sign the NoBiobank petition!
Four months into the legislative session, and after many requests, the Minnesota Department of Health has provided the state legislature with a list of all the genetic information (biological specimens and health data) that they have been collecting, using, storing and disseminating without legislative authority or individual written consent -- as required by the Minnesota Genetic Privacy Act (M.S. 13.386). The list was provided shortly before a floor vote on April 18 to give MDH retrospective legal protection against MGPA violation lawsuits as well as prospective authority to collect, store, use and share any and all genetic information on individuals without the individual's consent, long into the future.
The FIRST PAGE includes data that the statutes allow. The SECOND AND THIRD page is DNA and data they've collected and used by making up their own rules. There may be a statute listed, but it doesn't give them express authority to do what they've been doing in violation of the law. HF 695 and SF 745 will protect them from lawsuits forever...and give MDH ownership claims to the DNA of citizens. PETITION: http://bit.ly/SayNoDNABiobank
Multimedia
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April 10, 2013
On April 10, 2013, CCHF Presidenta Twila Brase spoke at a press conference hosted by Rep. Peggy Scott opposing the creation of a DNA BioBank by the state of Minnesota. She was joined Dr. Michelle Goodwin, a Bioethics professor from the U of M, and several other members of the MN House and Senate.
Medical Privacy
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April 17, 2012
Issues
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February 03, 2012
Bearder v. State of Minnesota was brought by nine families who wanted the state to obrtain written informed consent to collect, store or use infants' blood samples. The lawsuit was spearheaded by the Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom in St Paul.