Melissa Mourges, assistant district attorney and chief of the Forensic Sciences/Cold Cases Unit in the New York County District Attorney's office, said DNA has been invaluable in solving crimes and (exonerating inmates falsely imprisoned.) The Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), which are forensic databases maintained by all 50 states and the FBI, keeps DNA profiles of all known offenders. She said the system doesn't allow for identification of a suspect until there's a match in a case.

 

"We are never moving back with this technology," Mourges said. With DNA data, "we have evidence proving who done it—not beyond a reasonable doubt—but beyond all doubt."   Daniel Masys, affiliate professor of Biomedical and Health Informatics at the University of Washington School of Medicine, said, "The genome will tell the book of humanity, and as it is, we only understand one-third of the words. My major concern is that privacy not materially inhibit the ability to decode that book and understand what that means. Our ability to acquire person-specific DNA data far exceeds our understanding of this information. Genomics is the poster child for complexity in healthcare."  

 

Gutmann voiced concern about the public's lack of understanding around genetic testing.  

 

"There are snake-oil salesmen out there for everything, and if you go on the web, you will likely find all kinds of offers" or claims about the benefits of genetic testing, Gutmann said. "As a president of a university, I believe in not only getting more knowledge, but getting it out there to the public. But to what extent, given that science takes time to develop, is there any concern about the amount of misinformation out there?"  

 

Dr. Richard Gibbs, director of the Human Genome Sequencing Center at the Baylor College of Medicine, agreed.  

 

"The slow pace of discovery that can transform lives is dramatically affecting … the distribution of this data." Gibbs said. "That is a vastly higher risk than someone who may foolishly sign onto a snake-oil salesman … but the danger of not knowing is also a risk."

 

The results of genetic testing are "uniquely private," Annas said. "The most important part of genetic information is individual to you. You can look at your genome as your future diary. No one should open that diary without your consent."  

 

Mark Rothstein, the Herbert F. Boehl Chair in Health Law and Medicine at University of Louisville School of Medicine, asked, "Will genomic information increase health inequality? At the very least, genomic information will likely be used in ways we can't predict now."