Abbvie Worker Advances Suit Over Family Medical History Queries

Abbvie Inc. failed to defeat a proposed class action by a Chicago-area technician who says he and other workers were illegally asked to disclose their protected genetic information during pre-employment medical exams.

The company was wrong that the alleged inquiries didn’t seek information protected under the Illinois Genetic Information Privacy Act on the basis that the medical conditions and family medical history sought weren’t “genetic information,” the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said Tuesday. The Illinois law incorporates the definition of genetic information under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which includes the manifestation ...