What to Expect for Genetic Paternity Testing Costs

What to Expect for Genetic Paternity Testing Costs

 A DNA paternity test verifies the biological link between a father and a child.  When a man falsely identifies himself as the father of a child, he may be guilty of paternity fraud.  Apparently, this is a serious problem in both the United States and the rest of the world.  In an article published in USA Today, the American Association of Blood Banks reports that, of the 300,000 paternity tests performed annually, approximately 30% resulted in the exclusion of the tested individual as the biological father.  Paternity tests are important to validate the father-child relationship, and are generally worth the genetic testing cost.

 Some of the reasons for verifying the patriarchal relationship include the following.

• Siblingship studies
• Acknowledgement of the hospital Paternity Form
• Surrogate parent confirmation
• Inheritance settlements
• Social Security or Military Benefits due a child
• Child support responsibilities

 These are just a few of the many ways a paternity test is used.  Some consider the most important use of verifying the family relationship to be the peace of mind of both the parents and the child.

 Estimate of Costs

 Modern paternity tests continue to become less expensive.  Just a few years ago, people could expect to pay as much as $450.  Today, prices are lower because the number of people wanting tests has increased.  In essence, those desiring a paternity test today are getting a “volume discount”.

 Not All Test Centers Are Considered Equal

 As in any purchase, there is a danger in choosing the least expensive laboratory to perform the genetic testing.  Different laboratories test to different standards.  One laboratory may test to a standard that verifies the results to within a 99.99% standard.  Another laboratory, operating to a lesser standard in order to offer lower prices, may only be able to guarantee the results to a smaller percentage.  Most people who take the tests are doing so for either an important legal reason or a compelling personal reason.  Many end up deciding that it is worth the extra cost to get the highest quality results possible.

 This does not mean that someone should necessarily choose the highest priced testing center to get the best results.  A better strategy is for a person to find centers that meet the AABB (American Association of Blood Banks) accreditation, and then make the low cost choice from among those centers.

 In-house Testing is a Good Plan

 Another good plan is for interested parties to choose a center that performs their own testing.  Some centers operate as “testing brokers” and farm out their work to third party laboratories.  These brokers are not necessarily aware of the qualifications of their contractor labs.  Because the AABB standards are not mandated requirements, the satellite laboratories may not meet those standards.  This means they may not meet the expectations of their customers for the highest quality results.

 How Does Genetic Testing Establish Paternity?

Many people rightfully assume that genetic testing is very complicated and challenging to understand.  However, most people can understand the basics.  If they take the time to do so, they will put themselves in a much better position to choose the right lab for them.

 With the GTL legal paternity testing process, parents are matched to their children with genetic markers.  These markers are like license plates on a vehicle.  The human body has two sets of markers, those that come from the cell nucleus, and those that come from the mitochondria.  The latter comes solely from the mother, and is not useful in paternity testing.  For a male child, the patriarchal markers come from the Y chromosome in the nucleus.  Modern paternity tests, which produce a highly accurate result for a child of either gender, consist of the HLA technique, developed in the 1960s.  The HLA (human leukocyte antigen) has specific sequences that flag a particular ancestry.

 What Makes Up a Premium Test?

 Laboratory technicians identify a family relationship by matching these HLA sequences.  The more sequences that match, the more likely that the relationship is valid.  However, costs increase with each type of match.  To control expenses, many testing labs limit the number of matches to a maximum of nine sequence markers.  However, the highest quality labs offer a premium test of 16 markers.  Does someone really need this many tests?  The FBI thinks so.  They use the 16-marker standard.

 Choose a Value Testing Facility

 The bottom line is that parents can choose a facility that balances high quality testing with reasonable genetic testing cost.  Facilities with automated equipment can make this value offering.  Customers can choose a laboratory that offers high quality results at the most reasonable price possible.