The House of Representatives in a near-unanimous vote (414-1) approved the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 on Thursday.

The law forbids employers and insurance companies from using genetic tests showing people are at risk of developing cancer, heart disease or other ailments to reject their job applications, promotions, health care coverage or in setting premiums.

According to National Human Genome Research Institute, each person has six or more genetic mutations that place him/her at risk for some disease. Genetic testing can show whether a person is a carrier for a genetic disease or whether a person has an inherited disposition to a certain disease before symptoms start.

Supporters of the bill, which is soon expected to be signed into law by President George Bush, called it “the first major civil rights act of the 21st century.”

“By freeing people from fear of genetic discrimination, we can unlock the tremendous life-saving and cost-saving potential of genetic research. By prohibiting the improper use of genetic information, Americans will be encouraged to take advantage of the tremendous life-altering potential of genetic research. This legislation marks the beginning of a new era,” said Democratic Rep. Louise Slaughter of New York, chief sponsor of the bill, according to Reuters.

The bill passed the House a week after being approved by a 95-0 vote in the Senate and it is the result of a hard-fought 13-year battle to pass the bill. In fact, this is the fist time when the bill has such an overwhelming support. Similar bills faced opposition from employers and insurers in the past and also skepticism from lawmakers over its necessity.

Researchers have long supported the bill because Americans have been declining to take genetic tests or have been refusing false names and paying cash because they didn’t want the information used against them by their employer or insurance company, Francis Collins, head of the National Human Genome Research Institute said, according to the Associated Press.

Researchers also said a fear of discrimination prevented thousands of patients at risk of genetic disease from taking advantage of tests that might help them make better health care choices. These patients either try to persuade medical professionals not to enter the test results in their health records or keep the information secret from their doctors.

Moreover, people refused to participate in valuable research, setting back work that could lead to better treatment of diabetes, heart disease and other common conditions, scientists said.

"What this will do, hopefully, is make people feel more comfortable in participating in these research studies because, scientifically, it is clear that is where we have to go," said Michael Watson, executive director of the American College of Medical Genetics, representing laboratory directors and doctors.