Stem Cell Research Revisited

A while back, I indicated on this blog that I was sympathetic to the position of Gene Outka, a Christian ethicist at Yale, on stem cell research.  (For my earlier posting, and a quotation of Outka's position, click here.)  A bill that affirms Outka's position--a bill proposed by some Republicans--will be considered in Congress.  This report is from the this morning's online Chronicle of Higher Education:

U.S. House to Vote on a Bill That Would Loosen Bush's Restrictions on Embryonic-Stem-Cell Research

By KELLY FIELD

Washington

Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives have agreed to allow a vote on legislation that would liberalize President Bush's policy on stem-cell research, the bill's chief sponsor confirmed on Friday.

The vote is expected to occur in a few months. The legislation, if enacted, would allow researchers to use federal funds to study stem cells derived from embryos that were donated by fertility-clinic patients. The bill would not allow the use of federal funds for research on stem cells from embryos created through cloning.

Rep. Michael N. Castle, the Delaware Republican who originally introduced the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (HR 810) in 2004, said on Friday that he was "pleasantly surprised" that House leaders had approved his request for a vote. "I didn't necessarily expect this to happen," he said.

The Republican leaders, including the House speaker, J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois, are known for their strong opposition to abortion, an issue to which stem-cell research has been tied. Opponents of the research say that embryos are human lives and that destroying them to obtain the stem cells is tantamount to murder.

While the House leaders could still alter Mr. Castle's bill, or replace it on the legislative calendar with another stem-cell measure, their agreement on a vote marks a shift within the Republican Party, which only last August adopted a platform endorsing the existing restrictions on federal support for the research. Under the current policy, federal funds can be used only for research on colonies, or lines, of embryonic stem cells that existed in August 2001, when Mr. Bush announced the policy.

[To read the whole report, click here.]