By Dave Andrusko

"With more than $10 billion in stimulus money, health institute officials have been eager to expand stem cell research. Just 21 stem cell lines have been eligible for federal financing under the old rules. But researchers using private money have created more than 700 stem cell lines. "
     From "Rules Will Allow Financing for Old Stem Cell Lines," which ran in this morning's New York Times.

Yesterday, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued final rules that expand the use of your tax dollars and mine to lethally extract stem cells from human embryos. The results, while predictable, are nonetheless deeply disappointing.

Back in March pro-abortion President Barack Obama overturned the carefully crafted policy on embryonic stem cells instituted by pro-life President George W. Bush. As both cover and a lever to pry open the federal treasury box, Obama also promulgated a "presidential memorandum" that promises to make research on human embryos using federal dollars squeaky clean.

On Monday we began to see what this rhetoric would mean in practice. The two-fold question was how the federal government would fund cell lines created beginning today and whether cell lines created previously (but ineligible for federal funding under the Bush guidelines) would now make the cut.

For now--and I emphasize the word now--the target remain so-called "left over" or "excess" embryos from fertility clinics. Nobody who has reached the age of maturity believes that researchers will stop there. They are eager to create human embryos, by cloning and other methods.

In that light, there are these comments from Time magazine's account:

Acting NIH Director Dr. Raynard S.Kington

"[Acting NIH director Dr. Raynard S.] Kington said that the NIH would continue to review its guidelines for funding eligibility -- in particular, regarding cell lines derived from embryos created outside the IVF process. 'We know there is strong sentiment in this country for supporting federal funding of research involving cell lines from embryos created for reproductive purposes that otherwise would be destroyed,' said Kington. 'We don't believe there has been public discussion yet of the ethical guidelines regarding alternative sources of embryonic stem cells. We will reconsider the guidelines as science evolves, and as the public discussion over the ethical principles evolves.'"

The reporter added, "If the speed with which stem-cell advances in recent years have been made is any indication, those revisions may be on the horizon very soon." Can't say we haven't been warned!

We are assured that the guidelines go the extra mile to make certain that parents are fully informed before they give consent to allow their "excess" embryos to be sliced and diced. It's not quite that simple, however.

For example, under the draft guidelines, parents being asked to donate embryos for destructive research had to be told of all other options. But in the final guidelines issued yesterday, they only have to be told of all other options that happen to be available at that particular clinic! The number of "other options" offered could even be zero, and that is still fine.

How about the older cell lines that had been ineligible for federal funding? Read this, from this morning's New York Times:

"Scientists using stem cell lines created before Tuesday may seek review by a group of the Advisory Committee to the Director. If the lines were created under conditions that met the spirit but not the letter of the new rules, they will be approved, Kington said in a telebriefing with reporters.

"'Many of the lines already in existence may have met very rigorous standards of informed consent but may have been implemented in ways not consistent with the present guidelines,' Dr. Kington said. 'It's unreasonable to retroactively apply procedures intended for future use.'"

This is an all-purpose escape clause that allows the Advisory Committee to approve any and all applications, including those from abroad. The human embryos there may well have been secured under very different circumstances.

NIH said it had reviewed 49,000 comments from the public before finalizing the rules, which take effect today. This is third-hand information, but I was informed that Kington told reporters that 30,000 of the responses were against funding of human embryonic stem cell research.

Please send your thoughts to daveandrusko@gmail.com.

Part One