Genetic genealogy might be the crossroads where family history and medical biology meet. Your genealogy research may have led you to discover several ancestors who all had the same disorder or condition. To learn if you carry those same genes, you might consider getting a genetic consultation. Before you can do that, however, it would be a good idea to find out what it would cost to have that done.
There are several different kinds of genetic disorders that can be potentially be passed down from one family member to that person’s offspring. It is entirely possible for a person that is completely healthy to pass a genetically inherited disorder on to his or her child. This can happen with Tay-Sachs disease, where a parent who carriers the gene, but does not have the disease herself, can pass it onto her child. If both parents are carriers, there is a 50% chance their child will have Tay-Sachs. This is just one example.
There are two main reasons why a person will decide to seek a genetic consultation. One reason is you have learned that there is a chance you are carrying genes that will cause your health to degenerate. The other reason is if you are planning on having children, and want to know how likely it is that your child will be negatively affected by your genetic potential. The genetic consultation is a tool that can be used to rule out a genetic condition, or to confirm it. It is a great way to determine genetic risk.
What does it cost to get a genetic consultation? This depends on if you happen to have health insurance, or if you do not have any health insurance at all. According to the costhelper website, most health insurance policies will cover the cost of a genetic consultation. This is especially true for a person who has a known family history of a particular hereditary disease. In other words, if you have health insurance, a genetic consultation might only be as expensive as the cost of your co-payment. Generally, this will run you anywhere from $15.00 to $35.00.
What about if you don’t have health insurance? This is where things get a lot more expensive. On average, it can cost $150.00 per hour to have a genetic consultation done. If the condition is severe, or the genetic research takes a long time, the total cost could quickly be out of reach for most people. It is also possible that your genetic consultation reveals that you need to undergo some form of genetic testing. Again, many health insurance policies will cover the cost of that. If you don’t have health insurance, expect to pay anywhere from $150.00 to over $3,000 for the same service.
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