State RegulationsNJ specificDifficulty 2/5
An applicant for an individual health policy discloses the results of a genetic test. May the insurer use that genetic information in deciding whether to issue the policy?
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why B is correct
New Jersey law, N.J.S.A. 17B:26-3.2, prohibits insurers from using genetic information in making underwriting decisions about individual health coverage. An applicant's genetic test results cannot be the basis for denying, rating, or conditioning the policy. The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance enforces this prohibition as part of the state's individual health standards.
Why the other options are wrong
- A) A prediction of potentially costly conditions is exactly the use the statute forbids; the result cannot drive the underwriting decision.
- C) No consent form authorizes what N.J.S.A. 17B:26-3.2 prohibits.
- D) The source of the test results is irrelevant; the ban covers use of genetic information regardless of who performed the test.
Memory hook
Genes are off-limits in New Jersey underwriting — no test result tips the scale.