Today, Congressman Bill Shuster voted against legislation to allow federal tax dollars to fund embryonic stem cell research that would result in the destruction of human embryos. Over Shuster’s objection, the House passed S. 5, the "Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007." The legislation will now go to the President, who has stated his intent to veto the legislation.
"There is almost universal agreement that stem cell research could be the key to treating and even curing some of the most damaging diseases afflicting humanity. However, there is no such agreement on the ethics of destroying human embryos for research," Shuster said.
Current law does not allow federal funding for research on stem cell lines created after August 9, 2001. The legislation passed today removes this restriction and allows research that destroys human embryos on stem cell lines created after April 9, 2001.
"Stem cell research is advancing everyday. Adult stem cells continue to prove to be the most useful in combating disease. The apparent fixation House Democrats have on using human embryos for research ignores science in favor of political dogma."
"Scientific experimentation must be done with the utmost respect for the sanctity of every human life. It is immoral to promote the destruction of life in the name of science, when science itself is finding ways to avoid it," Shuster concluded.
This legislation ignores research announced in January by Harvard and Wake Forest University that indicates amniotic stem cells donated by pregnant women have the same versatility that embryonic stem cells were thought to uniquely have. Additionally, this legislation would also ignore work by Kyoto University to reprogram stem cells from mice in order to transform them into embryonic stem cells. This research was published yesterday in the scientific journal Nature and can be read
