KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Twenty-seven states, including Kansas and Missouri, filed a lawsuit Monday in an attempt to gain consumer protections in the possible sale of genetics company 23andMe.
Earlier this year, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the Eastern District of Missouri.
The bankruptcy filing immediately sounded alarm bells among consumer data privacy advocates, who worried about how personal genetic information might be handled during any sale of the company.
In May, U.S.-based biotechnology company Regeneron announced plans to purchase 23andMe for $256 million.
During the process of searching for a buyer, 23andMe required bidders to affirm they would comply with the company’s existing privacy policies and existing laws.
Regeneron said in a release on May 19 that the terms of its purchase would comply with 23andMe’s requirement and that a court-appointed, independent consumer privacy ombudsman would review the transaction with a focus on consumer privacy.
The ombudsman’s report was due June 10.
The lawsuit filed by the attorneys general on Monday calls on the court to block 23andMe’s sale to Regeneron unless customers consent to have their data transferred.
LINK | Read the lawsuit
A press release announcing Monday’s lawsuit estimated the personal data of 15 million people is part of the transaction.
"This isn’t just data — it’s your DNA. It’s personal, permanent and deeply private,” Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said in the press release. “People did not submit their personal data to 23andMe thinking their genetic blueprint would later be sold off to the highest bidder.”
In March, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach issued a consumer alert calling on Kansans to take steps to secure their genetic data with the company.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey issued a similar alert in March regarding 23andMe’s bankruptcy filing.
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