Economic Issues in Budgeting Genetic Test in Israel and in the World

Abstract

Promotion and performance of hereditary screening tests is known by the world health organizations as one of the economically most efficient processes, i.e., investing resources in screening tests in a process, which has increasing efficiency every year to locate an increasing number of known hereditary diseases in order to advice in preventing pregnancies with risk to have a child with incurable hereditary diseases and that will shorten his life expectancy. However, besides the economic success discussion, the other side must be examined, the side of the tests’ target population. For this population the screening tests’ economic aspect is both the tests cost and the illness’s influence on the family. The discussion in these two aspects is separate, with only few researches examining the mutual influence of these economic considerations. Therefore, an integrated examination of the considerations must be taken to increase the hereditary screening tests and continue to reduce the incidence of hereditary disease in the world.