[Genetic screening of patients with familial hypercholesterolemia and insurability for life insurance policies and disability cover policies].

In the Netherlands, people with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) have been actively screened since 1994 by means of DNA analysis. Recently, the Stichting Opsporing Erfelijke Hypercholesterolemie (Foundation for the Detection of Familial Hypercholesterolaemia) initiated a large scale-screening programme aimed at finding all 40,000 people. The Dutch ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport is providing the financial support. Genetic screening has social implications and raises questions on insurability. The Dutch Medical Examination Act prohibits insurers from posing questions about untreatable, serious inheritable conditions for insured sums under a certain value: for life-insurance policies < [symbol: see text] 150,000 and for disability-cover policies < [symbol: see text] 30,000 in the 1st year and < [symbol: see text] 20,000 in the 2nd year and following years. The Health Council of the Netherlands has defined FH as a serious disease, but one which responds well to treatment. Therefore insurers can request information for the purpose of an accurate risk classification. Insurance contracts can be accepted at normal rates if the target value of LDL-cholesterol < 4 mmol/l and additional risk factors such as smoking and an abnormal BMI are absent; the risk is determined by the phenotype and clinical factors and not by the genotype.