In my office, someone occasionally leaves a copy of the Tribune on the kitchen table for people to peruse throughout the day. One day last month, I glanced at that morning's paper on my way to make a cup of tea. A second later, halfway across the kitchen, I stopped in my tracks and said "Oh no." Seriously, it was like a cartoon. I'm glad no one was watching.
Here's the headline that caused my double-take: "Walgreens to Sell Gene Testing Kits."
For $20 or $30, the paper said, you'd soon be able to go to Walgreens and buy a little tube and an envelope. After spitting in the tube, you could pay another $79 to $249 to find out about your disease risks and other vague-but-valuable-sounding information.
You might think this sounds pretty OK, or you might think it sounds like a disaster. More on that in a moment. ...
