Natera Appoints Ruth E. Williams-Brinkley to its Board of Directors

Seasoned healthcare executive with extensive leadership experience in health plans, hospital operations, and physician relations

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Natera, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTRA), a global leader in cell-free DNA testing, today announced that Ruth E. Williams-Brinkley has been appointed to the Company’s board of directors.

Williams-Brinkley has three decades of healthcare industry experience. She currently serves as president of Kaiser Permanente Health Plan of the Mid-Atlantic States (KPMAS), where she oversees the company’s care delivery and health plan operations in Washington, D.C., suburban Maryland, Baltimore, and Northern Virginia. KPMAS serves nearly 830,000 members, operates more than 35 medical office buildings, and maintains partnerships with 11 premier hospitals and health systems in the region.

“Ruth is an accomplished healthcare leader and an extraordinary individual who will be an outstanding complement to our board,” said Steve Chapman, Natera’s chief executive officer. “We are thrilled to welcome Ruth to Natera and look forward to drawing on her deep knowledge and professional experience as a seasoned healthcare executive.”

The appointment of Williams-Brinkley, which is effective as of March 2, 2023, will expand the Natera board to ten directors.

Prior to her current role, Williams-Brinkley was president of Kaiser Permanente Health Plan and Hospitals of the Northwest. She also previously served as the inaugural CEO of KentuckyOne Health, which was the largest integrated health system in Kentucky; president and CEO of Carondelet Health System in Tucson, Arizona; and president and CEO of Memorial Healthcare System in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to join the Natera board at such an exciting time in the Company’s evolution,” said Williams-Brinkley. “Natera has an impressive portfolio of established products primed to address unmet clinical needs in oncology, women’s health and organ health. I am inspired to help advance the Company’s mission together with the board and leadership team.”

Williams-Brinkley serves on the boards of Travere Therapeutics, DePaul University, the Greater Washington Board of Trade, and the Northern Virginia Trade of Commerce. She obtained a bachelor’s degree and Master of Science degree, both in nursing from DePaul University.

About Natera

Natera^TM is a global leader in cell-free DNA testing, dedicated to oncology, women’s health, and organ health. We aim to make personalized genetic testing and diagnostics part of the standard of care to protect health, and inform earlier, more targeted interventions that help lead to longer, healthier lives. Natera’s tests are validated by more than 100 peer-reviewed publications that demonstrate high accuracy. Natera operates ISO 13485-certified and CAP-accredited laboratories certified under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) in Austin, Texas and San Carlos, California. For more information, visit www.natera.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements and are not a representation that Natera’s plans, estimates, or expectations will be achieved. These forward-looking statements represent Natera’s expectations as of the date of this press release, and Natera disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including with respect to our expectations of the benefits of our tests and product offerings to patients, providers and payers. Additional risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in "Risk Factors" in Natera’s recent filings on Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in other filings Natera makes with the SEC from time to time. These documents are available at www.natera.com/investors and www.sec.gov.