The Genetic Non-Discrimination Act and its Impact on Life Insurance
One of the many advancements in medicine has been the use of genetic testing in determining the probability that an individual will develop a life- threatening illness or condition. Knowing that you or your children are not at risk of a major illness can be of great comfort while knowledge to the contrary can be of great value in preventative treatment and planning. There was a growing concern, however, that individuals would be very reluctant to undergo genetic testing if knowing the results could affect their ability to properly insure themselves or impact their opportunities for employment. As a result, a private member’s bill, Bill S-201, was introduced in the senate resulting in the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act being recently enacted into law.
What does the Act do?
It is now illegal for employers, insurance companies, or any other entity or individual to require anyone to undergo genetic testing or to disclose the results of a genetic test before entering into a contract which provides goods or services. Now, if you apply for life, disability or critical illness insurance living benefit coverage, you cannot be denied coverage due to the results of a genetic test. Insurance companies and their agents are also prohibited from “collecting, using or disclosing” the results of a genetic test without an individual’s written consent. Penalties for not complying with the new law are severe. Read more 
Cardinal Update – November 2017
RESEARCH PROCESS IN FOCUS: IDEA GENERATION – In our regular correspondence, we tend to discuss why we bought, sold, or continue to hold stocks in the portfolio. This month, we thought it would be interesting to describe the process in how we actually come up with these ideas.
The first step is identifying the stocks we wish to research further. There is no magic formula here and we believe that the wider you cast your net, the more fish you’ll catch. Thus, we read a wide assortment of company financial reports and we also read broadly: newspapers, magazines, books, and trade journals……
COMPANY FOCUS: INTACT FINANCIAL – A year following our initial purchase of Intact Financial, we are happy with the share price performance (up approximately 12%) and take this as an opportunity to review the thesis……
Click here to read more: Cardinal Update – November 2017
DM Newsletter – November 2017
A RARE GREEN SHOOT ON THE SCORCHED EARTH OF RETAIL – We live in a period of rapid change. The same forces that have brought us previously unimagined technologies and conveniences, however, have also wreaked agonizing upheaval on certain parts of the economy. Perhaps nowhere has this dislocation been levelled with as much swiftness and ferocity as in the retail sector, where companies struggle to maintain relevancy and, in many cases, outright survival in the face of the “Amazon-ing” of their industry. One-time cornerstones like Sears Canada and Toys R Us have recently filed for bankruptcy, while outlets such as Foot Locker, Kmart, and Staples are either closing stores in multiples, selling off real estate, or paddling furiously against the unrelenting tsunami of competition.
Click here to read more: DM-Monthly-Report-Nov-17
