Social implications of biotechnology

The amount of information that can be gained through prenatal genetic screening is unprecedented, leaving prospective parents who discover their fetus has a defect the choice of whether to continue the pregnancy. There is nothing new in this choice, which is legally and ethically defensible as a private decision protected by parents\´ procreative liberty, except for the fact that the decision can be made much earlier in the pregnancy and for many more genetic defects than could be screened for even a few years ago. While health care providers struggle to remain "neutral" in their provision of information, a potential discussion of the social implications of this testing is truncated in the rush to give consumers what they demand: more information. A frank discussion of the validity of eugenics and eugenic practices needs to accompany the technological advances being made in genetic testing. This paper will explore three potential points for such a discussion: (1) that our society lacks a moral vocabulary to articulate what might be unethical about private eugenic choices; (2) that unfettered access to genetic information about one\´s offspring will change and is changing the meaning of parenthood; and (3) that an American drive for self-improvement and the improvement of one\´s offspring will find a ready partner in the medical-pharmaceutical industry meeting and creating our need for more tests.