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3The leaders of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce said they are investigating how 23andMe\u2019s bankruptcy might affect customers\u2019 data.<\/p>\n
Representatives Brett Guthrie, Gus Bilirakis, and Gary Palmer (all Republicans) sent a letter <\/a>Thursday to the genetic testing company\u2019s interim CEO Joe Selsavage asking a number of questions about how 23andMe will handle customer data if the company is sold.<\/p>\n The letter also says that some customers have reported problems deleting their data from the 23andMe website, and it notes that direct-to-consumer companies like 23andMe are generally not covered by the protections of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).<\/p>\n \u201cGiven the lack of HIPAA protections, the patchwork of state laws covering genetic privacy, and the uncertainty surrounding what happens to customer information should a sale of a company or customer data and information transpire, we are concerned that this trove of sensitive information is at risk of being comprised,\u201d the representatives write.<\/p>\n 23andMe, which settled a data breach lawsuit<\/a> for $30 million last year, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy<\/a> in March, with co-founder and CEO Anne Wojciki saying she was resigning to become a private bidder for the company.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n