WASHINGTON, DC (May 14, 2010) — In response to recent announcements about consumer genetic
tests being made available in retail drugstores, the Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) today
reiterated its position that these tests should be provided to the public only through the services of
appropriate health care professionals that order tests from laboratories that are certified by CLIA for highcomplexity
testing.
“Genetic testing continues to be an integral part of health care and there is great potential for future test
development and use as long as they are administered properly and interpreted in the context of the
overall medical evaluation of each patient,” said AMP President, Karen Mann, M.D., Ph.D. “AMP is
concerned that these types of direct access genetic tests will mislead consumers by making predictions
that are medically unproven or not meaningful and promoting purchase of products not proven to be
medically useful.”
AMP is an international medical and professional association representing approximately 1,800
physicians, doctoral scientists, and medical laboratory scientists who perform laboratory testing based on
knowledge derived from molecular biology, genetics, and genomics. Our members are dedicated to the
development and implementation of molecular pathology testing, including genetic testing, in a manner
consistent with the highest standards established by the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments
(CLIA), the College of American Pathologists (CAP), the American College of Medical Genetics
(ACMG), and the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).
About AMP
The Association for Molecular Pathology (AMP) is an international medical professional association
dedicated to the advancement, practice, and science of clinical molecular laboratory medicine and
translational research based on the applications of molecular biology, genetics and genomics. For more
information, please visit: www.amp.org.
