What is the US policy on stem cell research?
On August 9th, 2001, President George W. Bush announced that federal funds may be awarded for research using human embryonic stem cells if the following criteria are met: · The derivation process (which begins with the destruction of the embryo) was initiated prior to 9:00 P.M. EDT on August 9, 2001. · The stem cells must have been derived from an embryo that was created for reproductive purposes and was no longer needed. · Informed consent must have been obtained for the donation of the embryo and that donation must not have involved financial inducements. Note: However, in President Bush’s 2006 State of the Union Speech he stated, “Tonight I ask you to pass legislation to prohibit the most egregious abuses of medical research: human cloning in all its forms.” The US has, since that time, fallen behind the world community in the research of the uses of cell cloning and this statement has left little room for development of laws and limitations of the potential misuse of this research.
