Personal genetics firm 23andMe has appointed Kate Black as privacy officer and corporate counsel.
As a member of the legal and regulatory team, Black will be responsible for overseeing, updating and enhancing the company’s privacy and consent policies for customers in the US and further afield.
Commenting on her appointment, Black said: “The potential impact that 23andMe can have on both individual health and the entire healthcare industry is profound.
“In appropriately leveraging the 23andMe database, we can significantly advance healthcare delivery, but we will not succeed unless we approach it with the utmost concern about protecting customer privacy and building customer trust.”
Black joins from the US Department of Health and Human Services, where she worked as a federal regulatory and interoperability policy analyst in the office of the national coordinator for health information technology.
She has also served as health privacy counsel for the Center for Democracy and Technology in San Francisco and has additionally worked on health technology policy initiatives at the Office of Science and Technology at the White House.
Kathy Hibbs, chief legal and regulatory affairs officer at 23andMe whom Black reports to, added: “Last year, our company committed to hiring a private officer to help us ensure that our privacy and consent policies best complement our philosophy on the importance of customer choice and empowerment.
“While we have always had a team dedicated to this effort, we are thrilled to have Kate take a leadership role at 23andMe.”