Excerpts from President Clinton's Commencement Address at Morgan State University delivered on May 18, 1997 that pertain to privacy issues.

The White House Office of the Press Secretary

With stunning speed, scientists are now moving to unlock the secrets of our genetic code. Genetic testing has the potential to identify hidden inherited tendencies toward disease and spur early treatment. But that information could also be used, for example, by insurance companies and others to discriminate against and stigmatize people.

We know that in the 1970's, some African Americans were denied health care coverage by insurers and jobs by employers because they were identified as sickle cell anemia carriers. We also know that one of the main reasons women refuse genetic testing for susceptibility to breast cancer is their fear that the insurance companies may either deny them coverage or raise their rates to unaffordable levels. No insurer should be able to use genetic data to underwrite or discriminate against any American seeking health insurance. This should not simply be a matter of principle, but a matter of law.

To that end, I urge the Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to prohibit insurance companies from using genetic screening information to determine the premium rates or eligibility of Americans for health insurance.

Third, technology should not be used to break down the wall of privacy and autonomy free citizens are guaranteed in a free society. The right to privacy is one of our most cherished freedoms. As society has grown more complex and people have become more interconnected in every way, we have had to work even harder to respect the privacy, dignity, the autonomy of each individual.

Today, when marketers can follow every aspect of our lives, from the first phone call we make in the morning to the time our security system says we left the house, to the videocamera at the toll booth and the charge slip we have for lunch, we cannot afford to forget this most basic lesson.

As the lnternet reaches to touch every business and every household and we face the frightening prospect that private information - even medical records - could be made instantly available to the world, we must develop new protections for privacy in the face of new technological reality.