News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, August 8, 2004 |
Contact: HHS Press Office
(202) 690-6343
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Statement by Tommy G. Thompson
Secretary of Health and Human Services
On the President's Embryonic Stem Cell Policy
Three years ago, President Bush opened the nation’s
laboratory doors for the first time to federal taxpayer funding for
human embryonic stem cell research. The President remains committed
to this groundbreaking policy that is advancing medical research
into some of our most debilitating diseases. As we look forward to
further progress on stem cell research, both embryonic and adult,
it is important to keep in mind several important points.
President Bush provided -- for the first time -- federal funding
of embryonic stem cell research. The President’s
unprecedented decision allows for federal funding of research using
existing stem cell lines that were derived before Aug. 9, 2001,
with no limits on private funding of research. The President
believes that federal funds should not be used to encourage or
support further destruction of human embryos, a principle that has
been part of federal law since 1996. The impact of the
President’s decision was to open the flow of federal research
dollars for embryonic stem cells and help accelerate work in this
field.
The policy is working. Under President Bush, federal funding
for embryonic stem cell research has grown from zero under previous
administrations to $24.8 million in fiscal year 2003, with no
limits on future federal funding of research on eligible lines.
This investment has supported more than 500 shipments of stem cell
lines to researchers around the world who are in the early stages
of finding ways stem cells can be used to treat diseases such as
neurological disorders, diabetes and heart disease. Additionally,
in fiscal year 2003, the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
provided $190.7 million in adult stem cell research, which
continues to show exciting promise.
The Administration is working to maximize research opportunities
within the federal guidelines. NIH is taking new steps to
create a National Embryonic Stem Cell Bank that will provide a
ready source of human embryonic stem cells to scientists, ensure
consistent quality of the lines and provide other technical support
that will make it easier for scientists to use these lines. NIH is
also creating three new Centers of Excellence for Translational
Stem Cell Research with the goal of exploiting new discoveries in
basic embryonic and stem cell biology.
Let’s take advantage of the great opportunity that exists
before arguing that more is needed. The President’s
policy holds tremendous and yet-untapped potential, and there is
much work to do. Before anyone can successfully argue that the
existing federal stem cell policy needs to be broadened,
we must first exhaust the potential of the stem cell lines made
available within the policy, as well as the ability of the private
sector to go beyond the policy. Keep in mind: More lines are
available in the United States than any other country in the
world. And while federal funding has paid for more than 500
shipments to researchers to date, more than 3,500 shipments are
still available. Unlike many countries, there are no limits in the
United States on private stem cell research. One study estimates
that 1,000 scientists at more than 30 firms spent $208 million
experimenting on embryonic and adult stem cells in 2002 alone.
The future is promising. Years of hard work remains to be
done before the basic research of today can become viable
treatments and cures tomorrow. There is good reason to be
optimistic. And this optimism is made possible by the reasoned
policy of President Bush.
Fair and reasonable people can disagree on this complex and
difficult issue. President Bush made a tough decision that invested
in the scientific promise of embryonic stem cell research without
compromising an important ethical line. Three years later, it is
clear that this balanced approach is working. The future is
promising with the new research opportunities provided by President
Bush’s historic decision.
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Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
Last Revised: August 9, 2004
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