Frist: No Stem-Cell Vote - Diabetes and Stem Cell Research in Nevada

Frist: No Stem-Cell Vote
07.28.05
Kristen Philipkoski

A Senate bill that would expand funding for embryonic stem-cell research appears to be dead in the water, at least until the fall.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tennessee) denied a request Thursday morning to address a bill that would expand funding of embryonic stem-cell research in the United States.

Frist has weathered a maelstrom of criticism from patient groups and researchers for putting off a vote on the bill as Congress' summer recess approaches.

According to Sean Tipton, a spokesman for the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada) made a motion to bring up the bill, and Frist objected.

The House version of the bill, HR810, passed with a 238-194 vote May 24. The bill would violate President Bush's Aug. 9, 2001, executive order that allows federal funding only for research on stem cells derived from embryos destroyed before that date. Embryonic stem-cell research, which scientists believe could lead to treatments for many disabling diseases and injuries, is controversial because researchers destroy very young embryos to derive stem cells.

"Senator Frist tried to make excuses about how it's important to explore the other promising alternatives," Tipton said. "There are a lot of rumors about a lot of other legislation but ... there's no legislation that's been introduced on them yet."

Proponents of embryonic stem-cell research say opponents of the science have muddied the waters by discussing a half-dozen so-called alternatives to HR810. But some of the alternatives are unrelated to stem-cell research, the proponents say, such as an uncontroversial umbilical-cord-blood-banking bill.

Others have not yet been proven to work, nor have they been discussed in the House. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Maryland) has proposed legislation to put $15 million toward finding four alternative techniques to derive pluripotent stem cells (which can become almost any cell in the human body) without destroying an embryo.

"The so-called alternatives simply are not alternatives today," said Kathy Hudson, director of the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University. "Three of the four so-called alternatives are merely ideas that have not yet been tested or proven in animals."

A Senate source said Frist has led good-faith negotiations with the intent of coming to an agreement on how to approach the six bills for nearly three weeks. Reed moved to discuss the bill without a prior agreement, the source said.

Bartlett's office did not respond to a phone call requesting comment.

Pressure from embryonic stem-cell research advocates has increased recently, with political action committee StemPAC launching a television commercial criticizing Frist for holding up the legislation.

And in a bizarre incident last week in Wisconsin, Gov. Jim Doyle sanctioned the delivery of hundreds of used hypodermic needles to state Assembly Speaker John Gard's office in response to his opposition of cloning for stem-cell research. The package was sent by the mother of a young girl with juvenile diabetes who uses multiple needles daily to inject insulin.

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania), who is suffering from Hodgkin's disease, recently said he would attach the language of HR810 to the appropriations bill for the Department of Health and Human Services.

Frist promised months ago to discuss HR810 in the Senate, and Tipton said he and other supporters of embryonic stem-cell research intend to hold him to his word.

"It's a little frustrating that they didn't get to it in July," he said, "but we're going to keep the pressure up to make sure they get to it in the fall."

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