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May 24, 2005
Stem Cell Research Offers Hope for Finding Cures
Washington, DC - Today, Congressman Gene Green delivered the following speech on the floor of the House of Representatives as the House debated the Stem Cell Research and Enhancement Act.
 
“Undoubtedly, each of us on the floor today has a friend, family member or neighbor who could benefit from increased embryonic stem cell research, whether they suffer from spinal cord injury, Alzheimer’s, MS, or Juvenile Diabetes. 
 
“As we consider both the Castle/DeGette stem cell bill and the Smith legislation on umbilical cord stem cells, it’s important that we differentiate between the effects of these two bills.  I support both H.R. 810 the Castle/DeGette bill and H.R. 2520 the Smith bill. But one is not the substitute for the other.  The Castle/DeGette bill would expand research on embryonic stem cells, which have the ability to reproduce indefinitely and to evolve into any cell type in the body. 
 
“It is this element of embryonic stem cell research that offers the most hope for finding cures to the diverse set of diseases that plague too many Americans. We cannot take away that hope by shutting the door to federal research on embryonic stem cells.
 
“The President’s policy shut that door, and we’ve lost four years of the robust research that will be needed to cure the most-complex diseases. Opponents of this bill will say that embryonic stem cell research is unproven, but we’ll never know the true promise of embryonic stem cells if we hold back federal dollars for this research.
 
“If embryonic stems cell research gets us even one step closer to curing Parkinson’s, spinal cord injury or Alzheimer’s, it’s worth every penny.  Just ask Michael J. Fox, Dana Reeve or Nancy Reagan. 
 

 

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