Two scientists behind suit to block stem-cell research funding speak with lawmakers

The Wall Street Journal: "The two scientists behind the lawsuit that has temporarily blocked federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research said Wednesday they were motivated by ethical objections to destroying human embryos for medical research. The scientists, James Sherley of Boston and Theresa Deisher of Seattle, had never met until this week, when they flew to Washington to confer with House and Senate aides and lobby against research using embryonic stem cells. They were recruited separately by lawyers looking to challenge the federal policy. … A federal judge last week ruled the research violated federal law. The decision rocked the scientific community while bolstering social conservatives, who have long argued the experiments are immoral" (Meckler and Adamy, 9/2).

U.S. News & World Report: "Little more than a year after President Obama lifted a ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, the administration is fighting to uphold its decision. The Justice Department is challenging a court ruling handed down last week by U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth that froze federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. Lamberth's temporary injunction has put dozens of medical experiments on hold—including research on fighting spinal cord injuries, Parkinson's disease, diabetes, and other diseases. The department is seeking a stay of the court's injunction and has filed a notice of plans to take the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals, should Lamberth stick to his ruling" (Haupt, 9/1).

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This article was reprinted from khn.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.