NIH discards rules and ethics to fund human embryo research
Guidelines say tax dollars can be used on unethical research

Paying little heed to current prohibitions - and public outcry - against federal funding of such research, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently released guidelines that allow government funds to be used in experiments using human embryos.

The August 23 NIH press release claims their guidelines “help ensure the research will be conducted in an ethical and legal manner.” What the NIH seems to have forgotten - or ignored - is the fact that such research cannot possibly be ethical or legal. First of all, any research which involves the destruction of human life is, by its very nature, unethical. Second, since 1994 a Congressional ban specifically prohibits “research in which a human embryo or embryos are destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death...” (Sec. 511 of Pub. L. No. 105-277).

In essence, what the NIH is doing is skirting the intent of the law or, more accurately, creating a loophole right through the middle of it. They claim that embryonic stem cells do not constitute an embryo and therefore research may be federally funded. However, they turn a blind eye to the fact that such cells are derived from embryos and necessitate their destruction in order to be used. In other words, private funds must go toward killing the embryos, but taxpayer dollars may support research done on the harvested cells. The NIH’s legal and rhetorical gymnastics are astounding.

The fact is that the potential benefits of such research are not limited to embryonic stem cells. Cells derived from adults and from fetal cord blood also hold great promise and, when used to treat the same patient, have the added plus of avoiding immuno-incompatibility problems. In any case, these sources are certainly the ethical alternatives and further research into their potential should be pursued.

Proponents of embryonic stem cells insist “all avenues of research must remain open” to provide “new hope for millions of Americans.” The question remains: is our zeal for research so vehement - and our moral vision so clouded - that we will sacrifice some lives in order to improve others?

* “NIH Publishes Final Guidelines for Stem Cell Research,”NIH News Release, August 23, 2000
* “NIH Fact Sheet on Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Guidelines,” National Institutes of Health, August 23, 2000
* “Stem Cell Research Questions and Answers,” Juvenile Diabetes Foundation website: http://www.jdfcure.org
* “Stem Cell Research: Some Pros and Cons,” Dianne N. Irving, M.A., Ph.D., as appeared in UFL Pro Vita: Newsletter of the University Faculty for Life, Washington, D.C.; Vol. X, No. 1 (October 1999)

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