ican Diabetes Association.

As the end of the twentieth century draws near, we can look back with some satisfaction at the progress that has been made in combating discrimination on many fronts and applaud the laws—national, state and local— that have attempted to ensure fair employment prac-tices. For example, it is worth remembering that before 1941, no one with diabetes was eligible for any federal employment, and until 1985, if you took>25 U insulin/ day, you were ineligible for any hazardous federal job, regardless of how well controlled your diabetes might be. Although such blatant and irrational discrimination against people with diabetes has been eliminated, more subtle societal barriers to employment still exist. In a well-designed survey, Songer et al. (p. 615, this issue) document that in both their sample and the lit-erature, most people with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) have normal employment records. Nevertheless, hiring practices may still be discrimina-tory toward individuals with IDDM. In response to the question, "Were you ever turned down from a job to which you applied? Yes/No, " individuals who disclosed in job interviews that they had diabetes reported almost 2.5 times more job refusals in their lifetimes than non-diabetic sibling controls. Conversely, individuals who, during the job interview, withheld the fact that they had IDDM had the same risk of job refusal as their siblings. Accordingly, Songer et al. suggest that potential em-ployers be prohibited from asking about diabetes on ap