Paternity Test Archives - Page 24 of 54

IDENTIGENE Launches New National Television Advertising Campaign

by HOMEDNA on 11/15/2012

IDENTIGENE launched a new national television advertising campaign to increase public awareness of DNA paternity tests and their availability in drugstores and super centers. The fifteen-second national cable TV spots center on the theme, ‘Paternity Questions? We Can Help’. You can watch one of them here.

IDENTIGENE is seeing results of the awareness campaign on social media sites like Twitter. Tweets reflect a common theme: Consumers are surprised to learn that DNA paternity testing is so easily available at the corner drugstore or super center. Four years after DNA testing first appeared nationwide on drugstore shelves, the company says there is a long way to go in terms of educating the general public. The national TV campaign is a first, and an attempt to close the knowledge gap.

Steve Smith, Executive Director of IDENTIGENE says, ‘Television is great way to increase awareness. So many people associate DNA paternity tests with TV talk shows. But we want to let people know that IDENTIGENE offers a private, affordable way to get accurate DNA paternity test results.’

The newly-released ad campaign highlights three separate, but important parts to a puzzle – mother, father and child. Each commercial begins with an incomplete puzzle board and then finishes with an intact family. IDENTIGENE understands that paternity answers are not a cure-all, yet research shows that children who can identify their biological father are less likely to engage in criminal activity, live in poverty and suffer from abuse or neglect. While the retail kit is for a simple DNA paternity test, IDENTIGENE also offers more advanced services such as Family Reconstruction. If the biological father is deceased or unavailable, Family Reconstruction helps determine paternity based on testing the DNA of other family members.

IDENTIGENE offers a variety of DNA testing not mentioned in the commercials. For example, a maternity test confirms the identity of an adopted person’s biological mother, an avuncular test identifies aunts and uncles, and a sibling test reveals the truth about brothers and sisters. DNA testing for immigration is also an important service.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! If you have questions about paternity tests or other DNA testing services, please contact our Client Support Center at 888-404-4363, Mon-Fri from 9 AM to 6 PM Eastern Time. Our friendly, expert representatives are ready and happy to help. Get answers anytime by visiting our Help Center.

Increasing Awareness of Paternity Fraud in America

by HOMEDNA on 11/01/2012

IDENTIGENE has been working to increase awareness of paternity fraud in America whereby a woman allows a man to assume he is the biological father, even though he is not.

It’s an issue with potentially serious consequences for everyone involved, from financial obligations to custody arrangements to emotional attachments.

The campaign to raise awareness of paternity fraud reached millions of people and was conducted through advertising, outreach to news organizations, social media, and the efforts of Dennis Fuller, a Dallas, Texas attorney who has championed this cause. ‘In my professional experience, the truth about paternity leads to a positive outcome for everyone involved,’ Fuller says.

One Paternity Fraud Story

Mr. Fuller provides the example of his client, Barry Wallace. Mr. Wallace was sentenced to prison for nonpayment of child support. His wife sought legal assistance and DNA testing, eventually proving paternity fraud and freeing her husband from jail. The mother of the little girl had a brief encounter with Wallace and had for years wanted to stop the child support, enabling her husband to officially adopt the little girl and assume financial obligation. Disestablishing paternity was a positive for all parties.

See more of Mr. Wallace’s personal story here.

The state of Texas offers a case study for tackling the issue of paternity fraud. Texas law had long held that once the court officially identified someone as the father, that designation could not be changed-even if DNA testing proved he was not the father. Accordingly, men identified as the father were also obligated to pay child support, which can be as high as 40% of a man’s income. On May 12, 2011, the Texas Family Code was amended. The new law created a window of time, or statute of limitations, for men previously adjudicated to be ‘the father’ to petition the court for DNA testing. If DNA testing proved a man not the biological father, the court would terminate future child support payments.

A deadline of September 1, 2012, was set for men to come forward to petition for DNA testing. Looking ahead, the new law allows one calendar year to petition the court for DNA testing when a man suspects he is a victim of paternity fraud. If a man suspects he is not the father, he must notify the court and request a DNA paternity test within 12 months of the day he discovers he is not the father. If DNA testing proves a man is not the father, the obligation for future child support can be voided. If the 12-month deadline is missed, DNA does not matter and a man will be held to these future financial obligations.

Paternity Fraud: Some Stats

According to SupportKids.com, more than 8 million children in the United States do not receive any of the child support they are owed. The national unpaid child support balance exceeds $106 billion. Penalties for owing child support include wage garnishment and jail. In some cases, men are punished for not paying support for a child later determined not biologically related. The amount of unpaid child support due to paternity fraud is not known. ‘IDENTIGENE processes thousands of paternity tests every month and about one-third come back excluded, meaning the alleged father is not the biological father. We know paternity fraud is real and its effects can be life altering,’ says IDENTIGENE Executive Director, Steve Smith.

Disestablishing paternity varies by state. Some attorneys advise men who father a child outside of marriage to do a DNA paternity test before signing a birth certificate. If you suspect paternity fraud, IDENTIGENE suggests contacting a family law attorney to discuss next steps.

IDENTIGENE DNA Paternity Test Now Available at Over 23,000 Retail Locations

by HOMEDNA on 10/12/2012

IDENTIGENE has expanded its reach to super centers across the U.S. The home DNA test will now be available in approximately 3,500 additional stores.

IDENTIGENE Executive Director Steve Smith says, ‘Our goal has always been to make paternity testing affordable and accessible to everyone. Adding so many new stores, especially in rural markets, goes a long way toward making accurate paternity results convenient for everyone in America.’

Since 2007, major drugstores have offered the IDENTIGENE DNA paternity test kit to their customers. The kit is either merchandised in the Family Planning or the Home Testing aisle. Smith says, ‘Expanding retail presence is so important because it provides more opportunities for people to see the kit on the shelf and become aware that a DNA paternity test is available and affordable.’

A recent U.S. survey commissioned by IDENTIGENE found that approximately one in ten (10%) of adults have personally been in a situation where a paternity test was appropriate and one in five people (20%) have had a close friend or family member question paternity. Yet, most Americans are unaware that DNA testing technology is accessible from the drugstore-and now super centers!

One Paternity Fraud Story

Paternity Fraud: Some Stats

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