Precision medicine leverages genetic services, latest tech to personalize your care

Getting Health Care Right

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Precision medicine involves a highly individualized approach to health care, whether it’s prevention, diagnosis or treatment. The fact that technology has evolved to such a point makes for an exciting time in medicine, according to Courtney Rice, director of precision medicine and genetic counselor with TriHealth, on the latest episode of the Getting Health Care Right podcast.

“The first Human Genome Project took two years to do a sequencing of one individual, and the project was over $2 billion,” Rice says. “Fast-forward to present day. The cost of genetic testing is around a few hundred dollars and we can see results return back within a week.”

In this episode, Rice talks precision medicine with host Jamie Smith, market president and publisher of the Cincinnati Business Courier. Listen for more about:

• The percentage of new medicines approved by the FDA in the past nine years that are considered precision medicine (3:03).
• Times to check with your primary care provider to see if precision medicine or genetic testing is appropriate (6:58).
• What happens during a genetic counseling visit (9:50).
• Types of testing typically covered by insurance (11:24).
• How precision medicine fits with TriHealth’s population health model (14:06).

Rice also discusses the topic of genetic information misuse and laws in place that protect patients. The federal Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) states a person’s genetic information is protected from health insurance companies and employers from misusing the information. (GINA law does not apply to supplemental insurance such as life, long-term care, or disability insurance and does not apply to employers with fewer than 15 employees, U.S. military or federal government employees. The U.S. military and federal government have separate policies in place that may protect these members.)

Personalized care is better care. Learn more about precision medicine and genetic services at TriHealth.