Genome sequencing rated top advance of past 40 years.

The sequencing of the human genome represents the most significant breakthrough in healthcare over the past 40 years, according to Modern Healthcare readers. That achievement, capping a 13-year, $3 billion international effort funded by the federal government, drew the most votes from the 728 respondents to a survey that listed 60 healthcare milestones achieved since Modern Healthcare was founded in 1976. The survey asked readers to pick their top five choices from each of three categories: science and technology; healthcare delivery; and politics and policy.