I believe that Rep. DeGette has put all of her eggs in one basket (no pun intended). She seems to only focus on embryonic stem cell research. She has written a book which I read that criticizes others who would not listen to her and yet I have repeatedly tried to contact her concerning the lack of availability of safe adult stem cell therapy in the U.S. and the issue of the FDA declaring our own stem cells to be prescription drugs. I have yet to receive even a form letter reply from her. I am seriously beginning to believe that she (and others) are all talk and not much action and that they deliberately choose controversial issues to throw in the face of those that are more conservative. This is my opinion based on my experience with Ms. DeGette. Her book contradicts her own behavior. She appears to have become like many of those she has criticized in lending a deaf ear to anything but her special interest - embryonic stem cell research. Her daughter suffers from diabetes and most likely could benefit from adult stem cell therapy. We need politicians to get behind the adult stem cell issue now because so many people could benefit from therapy. Embryonic stem cell therapy is years, if not decades away from blanket use for humans. No one with a terminal disease can wait for it. Economically, the U.S. is losing out too as more and more patients go to offshore clinics for treatment. Wake up and smell the stem cells Ms. DeGette!
This article is from the Washington Post 10/10/2009
THE SWIRL of controversy that greeted President Obama's executive order lifting the ban on federal funding of stem cell research in March didn't make a significant return when the final rules were released over the summer. That's because the National Institutes of Health successfully navigated a minefield of ethical and moral questions. To protect those regulations from politics and changes by another administration, Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) soon will introduce the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2009. The legislation would codify Mr. Obama's executive order permitting federal funding of such research within guidelines established by the NIH and would require that they be reviewed periodically.
Usually, couples who go to in vitro fertilization clinics create more embryos than will be implanted. The remainder are either destroyed or frozen. The NIH regulations and the bill would allow couples to donate their embryos for research as long as they are fully informed of their choices and they are not compensated for the embryos. The guidelines give donors the ability to change their minds "until the embryos were actually used."
Mr. Obama's executive order overturned one issued by President George W. Bush in 2001 that allowed federal funding only for those stem cell lines already developed. Scientists ultimately found the number of approved lines too few and the utility of those lines limited.
For facilities with stem cell lines developed on or before July 7, the NIH will establish a committee of scientists, ethicists and advocates to examine on a case-by-case basis the procedures and paperwork to determine whether the lines were derived with voluntary informed consent from donors and in a manner consistent with the new rules. This panel would also make the same evaluation of stem cell lines originating outside the United States. There are an estimated 700 stem cell lines already in existence.
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The bill specifically outlaws human cloning, as do the NIH guidelines. And Congress already prohibits federal funding for collecting stem cell lines from human embryos, which are destroyed in the process. But the NIH rules make it clear that taxpayer money will not be used on lines from embryos created solely for research. The life-saving treatments and therapies that could result from stem cell research should not come from crossing this clear moral and ethical boundary.
This article is from the Washington Post 10/10/2009
THE SWIRL of controversy that greeted President Obama's executive order lifting the ban on federal funding of stem cell research in March didn't make a significant return when the final rules were released over the summer. That's because the National Institutes of Health successfully navigated a minefield of ethical and moral questions. To protect those regulations from politics and changes by another administration, Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) soon will introduce the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2009. The legislation would codify Mr. Obama's executive order permitting federal funding of such research within guidelines established by the NIH and would require that they be reviewed periodically.
Usually, couples who go to in vitro fertilization clinics create more embryos than will be implanted. The remainder are either destroyed or frozen. The NIH regulations and the bill would allow couples to donate their embryos for research as long as they are fully informed of their choices and they are not compensated for the embryos. The guidelines give donors the ability to change their minds "until the embryos were actually used."
Mr. Obama's executive order overturned one issued by President George W. Bush in 2001 that allowed federal funding only for those stem cell lines already developed. Scientists ultimately found the number of approved lines too few and the utility of those lines limited.
For facilities with stem cell lines developed on or before July 7, the NIH will establish a committee of scientists, ethicists and advocates to examine on a case-by-case basis the procedures and paperwork to determine whether the lines were derived with voluntary informed consent from donors and in a manner consistent with the new rules. This panel would also make the same evaluation of stem cell lines originating outside the United States. There are an estimated 700 stem cell lines already in existence.
ad_icon
The bill specifically outlaws human cloning, as do the NIH guidelines. And Congress already prohibits federal funding for collecting stem cell lines from human embryos, which are destroyed in the process. But the NIH rules make it clear that taxpayer money will not be used on lines from embryos created solely for research. The life-saving treatments and therapies that could result from stem cell research should not come from crossing this clear moral and ethical boundary.