March 22, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
PALO ALTO, Calif. – Neither the offices of embattled Theranos, nor the home of Elizabeth Holmes, the company’s chief executive officer, will be the site of a fundraiser for Hillary Clinton, a Democratic presidential candidate, as was previously thought.
Holmes is one of 11 hosts for the event, but the fundraiser will be held at the private home of another host, CNBC reported this morning after obtaining a copy of the invitation. A spokesperson for the Clinton campaign told CNBC that the fundraiser is not connected to any particular company, nor is it being billed as a healthcare-themed event. The confusion came following a preliminary invitation mailed earlier this month suggesting the event would be held at the offices of Theranos. Brooke Buchanan, vice president in charge of communications at Theranos, told the Wall Street Journal that using Theranos’ office was a “placeholder,” but the event was never planned to be held at Theranos.
“We frequently send initial invitations while host committees are still being formed and locations finalized. This was never a health care event and the location wasn’t set. It will not be at Theranos,” the campaign told CNBC in an email.
The aim of the event in Palo Alto is to bring young women together to talk about entrepreneurship and talk to women directly involved, or hoping to become involved, in the tech industry, a Clinton aide told the Wall Street Journal. Theranos’ Holmes is certainly a compelling player in the health tech industry, founding her company at the age of 19 and driving it to an estimated value of $9 billion.
When news initially broke that the fundraiser was being held at Theranos, it sparked criticism that the embattled blood-testing company was more concerned about fostering political relationships than focusing on its business, which has been under siege with questions of the efficacy of its tests and concerns over its laboratory practices.
For the past six or so months, Theranos has been under fire for the efficacy of its blood testing products as well as conditions at a Newark, Calif. lab, raised after an inspection by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The USMMS said the company’s hematology practices at that site “posed immediate jeopardy to the health and safety” of patients. There were also concerns Theranos sent results of blood tests back to 81 people taking blood thinners for a test called PT/INR, a blood test that measures how long it takes blood to clot. Accuracy is crucial for blood thinner testing so doctors will be able to appropriately adjust dosages for patients. Business Insider, citing the Wall Street Journal, said laboratories use a deviation rule for testing blood thinners due to the trickiness of accuracy, but the Theranos results were outside those parameters.
The fundraiser will include a $2,700 “host reception” with Chelsea Clinton, daughter of the candidate and former President Bill Clinton. Holmes’ association with the fundraiser is not her first foray into the world of politics—which is not surprising for a CEO of a $9 billion company. Theranos has had a number of political figures associated with its leadership, including Marine Gen. James Mattis, who is a member of Theranos’ board of governors. While at the Department of Defense, Mattis was allegedly sought out by Holmes to help with some concerns about Theranos’ blood testing products raised by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Theranos said the Department of Defense was interested in adapting the company’s blood tests for battlefield use in a pilot program that would not have required FDA approval. Other noted political figures associated with Theranos leadership include former presidential cabinet members Henry Kissenger and George Schultz. Once members of the board of directors, Kissenger and Schultz now serve on a “board of counselors” to provide advice to Theranos’ board.
