[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 58 (Wednesday, April 11, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4386-S4391]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HOPE OFFERED THROUGH PRINCIPLED AND ETHICAL STEM CELL RESEARCH ACT--
Continued
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Republican leader.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, the issue of stem cell research, when
those stem cells are derived from human embryos, is one of the most
profound of our time. Confronting this issue means confronting a
dilemma, one I am sure every one of my colleagues has grappled with as
much as I have.
On the one hand, many scientists believe that research using stem
cells holds the promise of one day curing diseases. But we must also
remember that the embryos from which these stem cells are derived are
human life. Extracting the stem cells destroys the embryo and ends that
life's possibility. The moral boundaries this research crosses is
greatly troubling to me, and to many others.
[[Page S4387]]
But what is too often missing from this important debate is a simple
fact of modern science: Encouraging medical research and protecting the
sanctity of life are not mutually exclusive goals.
I have always believed that biomedical research must be conducted in
an ethical manner that respects human life. Now I am pleased to report
that new scientific research tells us that view is more possible than
ever.
This promising new research points the way out of the moral dilemma
that embryonic stem cell research has always thrust us in.
Alternative methods for research and the potential for cures are
often simpler and more efficient and don't require the destruction of
life.
They have scientific advantages over the older method as well. That
means that everybody who wants to find a cure for any of man's most
devastating diseases, and find it fast, should support this form of
research wholeheartedly and enthusiastically.
With our votes, this Senate can advance this promising research
through the power of Federal funds, and we can happily provide those
funds without fear of offending the principles of millions of
Americans.
I thank my good friend from Minnesota, Senator Coleman, and my good
friend from Georgia, Senator Isakson, for sponsoring this bill and
giving the Senate this opportunity. I also commend Senator Specter and
Senator Brownback who have led the debate on the competing measure upon
which we will also be voting shortly.
The Coleman-Isakson bill, S. 30, the HOPE Act, is a solution Senators
from both parties can embrace and a solution that the President will
sign into law.
We should leave behind the heated debates of the past, pitting the
hope for a cure to end human suffering against the need to protect life
at all its stages, including its earliest.
Last year, a minority of Members in the other body voted to block
legislation promoting newer methods of research, such as the methods
this bill will support. I don't understand that. The only explanation
would be that they value the political clash and debate more than
finding common ground--and more than the hope this research can bring.
But this Senate can and should move forward united on the HOPE Act,
and I urge my colleagues to support it.
I want to stress to everyone just how much the possibility of finding
cures for these life-altering diseases means to me personally. I have
known what it is like to feel the shadow of a debilitating disease
draped over one's life. As a child, I suffered from polio.
When I was 2 years old, I came down with an infection that felt a lot
like the flu. But after the fever passed, my left leg had gone lame.
The only reason I am able to stand here today unaided is because of
the heroic efforts of my mother. She was not a doctor or a nurse, but
she fought as hard as she knew how to save her only son from being
trapped forever in a leg brace.
For 2 years, my mother put me through a physical therapy regimen
taught to her by the doctors at Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for
Rehabilitation, which was, of course, founded by President Roosevelt.
That was over in Warm Springs, GA. From age 2 to 4, I was not allowed
to walk or to run.
But after 2 years of my mother's care, I was able to have a normal
life. A lot of kids at that time in the 1940s were not so lucky. Some
were paralyzed for life. Some were sentenced to an iron lung. Many
died.
So believe me, Mr. President, when I say I understand the urgency to
find cures for the afflictions that are today's polio. I remember when
the prayers of my mother and mothers across the country were answered
when Dr. Jonas Salk developed his polio vaccine in 1955. To prove the
new vaccine was safe, Dr. Salk administered it to himself, his wife,
and their three children. As he did so, he was asked how he could dare
his and his family's lives on his new treatment. He replied:
It is courage based on confidence, not daring--and it is
confidence based on experience.
Dr. Salk's wisdom ought to guide us today. The daring path is the one
that asks us to destroy a life for the possibility that we might save
another. If we go down that route, we are daring to ruin America's long
and proud record of upholding the highest moral and ethical standards
as we seek out new solutions, new cures, and new hopes.
Then there is the path of confidence--the confidence that, thanks to
new technologies and new methods of research, scientists can explore
the promise of embryonic stem cell research without destroying the
human embryo.
Like Dr. Salk's, this confidence is based on experience--
the experience of America's best scientists who are pursuing
these new methods of research.
The next Dr. Jonas Salk is out there. Providing the money for these
methods of research through this bill is how this Senate can help.
I am a believer in the power of science and technology to improve
people's lives. I saw it firsthand as a young boy.
Like all of my colleagues, I have great hope for the cures that we
will one day find. The Coleman-Isakson bill is something Senators of
both parties can support. I hope that they will. Millions of Americans
with loved ones in need hope that they will. And I look forward to the
successful passage of this bill so America's dominance in medicine and
medical technology can continue to move forward.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
How much time is remaining on this side?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 7 minutes 35 seconds remaining.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I yield the remaining time on this side
to the Senator from Georgia.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I thank the leader for his support and
particularly Meg Hauck who has been of immense value to us throughout
the entire process of this deliberation.
I thank majority leader Harry Reid and his staff on the floor for the
equitable and fair way in which they allocated time in support of this
debate.
I thank Tyler Thompson on my staff, Chris Carr, Joan Kirchner, and a
former member of my staff who retired but started this journey with me
some time ago, Brittany Espy; also, Dr. Steven Stice at the University
of Georgia, whom I have quoted many times on this floor in the course
of the last 20 hours of debate, but a scientist like many in America
who seeks to find cures for diseases not yet cured, who understands the
potential, the vibrance, and the hope of embryonic stem cell research
and found ways to develop those embryonic stem cells that are
compatible with the directive of the President of 5 years ago but offer
new, expanded hope and reality for research in the future.
I particularly pay a compliment to Senator Harkin who has been the
floor manager on S. 5 throughout this debate. He has been very
cooperative in every way in allowing us to share our thoughts on two
distinct bills, S. 5 and S. 30.
I want to quote Senator Gordon Smith. Senator Smith, in his speech,
said these bills should not be looked at as competitors but as
companions. I agree with that statement because they seek to accomplish
the same thing, although they travel down a highway that differs
slightly.
The minority leader has accurately expressed the hopes and dreams and
aspirations of all Americans, and that is for us to be a catalyst at
the Federal level, to ensure that breakthroughs in health, in medicine,
and in science take place, and that we are never a hindrance or
obstacle to that taking place, while at the same time respecting
concerns of all Americans as we go down that path.
Senator Coleman of Minnesota has been a tremendous leader in this
effort and has brought many of the portions of S. 30 to reality through
his research, through his dedication, and through his compassion. As he
said so often, he and Senator Harkin and myself understand we can do
better, we can do more, we can reach out, and we can do so without
crossing those lines that cause us trouble or may become an obstacle to
further research.
So I conclude my remarks by thanking my colleagues in the Senate for
their patience and their listening over the last 20 hours. My sincere
appreciation to Senator Harkin for his cooperation, my praise for
Senator Coleman
[[Page S4388]]
and his contribution, and my hope and belief that Members of the Senate
will look favorably on S. 30 so we can move science forward in the
research of embryonic stem cells and the hope and promise they bring to
all Americans.
I yield back the remainder of the time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have risen many times over the past years
in support of the legislation that is now before this body, legislation
that will unlock the hope of stem cell research for millions of
Americans and tens of thousands of Nevadans who suffer from cancer,
Alzheimer's, diabetes, Parkinson's, spinal cord injuries, heart
disease, Lou Gehrig's disease, and many other diseases.
Initially, I extend my appreciation to Senator Harkin. Others worked
hard on this legislation. Senator Kennedy and Senator Feinstein have
done a wonderful job, but Senator Harkin, from his position as the
chair and/or ranking member of the labor subcommittee on
appropriations, has worked with Senator Specter--back and forth, the
two of them have worked to come up with stem cell legislation.
Senator Harkin has been a pioneer and a leader in this cause. I
admire and respect him for a lot of what he has done as a longtime
Member of the Senate, but I know I have more respect for him for what
he has done on this legislation.
He has a tremendously good staff: Erik Fatemi, Ellen Murray, and
Adrian Hatlett. They have done good work.
I have to throw a bouquet to my longtime, very important legislative
advocate whom I have working for me, Carolyn Gluck. She has worked very
hard on this issue. I appreciate her hard work.
I have spoken in the past about a man I met who is in a wheelchair in
Boulder City, NE. This man suffers from Parkinson's. I asked him why he
was in his wheelchair. He told me. After this legislation was vetoed by
President Bush, he felt so bad because he believes with this
legislation he will be able to walk again and not be confined to that
wheelchair.
I have spoken of an 18-year-old twin from Las Vegas. She came to
Washington for the first time when she was a little girl. She has
suffered from juvenile diabetes for most of her life. She has had tens
of thousands of needle pricks over these years--tens of thousands. But
this 18-year-old girl still remains optimistic because of this
legislation--optimistic for a healthy adulthood. Not only does she feel
that way but her twin sister feels the same way.
I have spoken of a 23-year-old man from Henderson who just weeks
after his high school graduation was in a car accident which left him a
quadriplegic and whose mother wrote to me a plaintive letter hoping,
praying because of this legislation her son one day will lead a more
normal life.
The plight and suffering of these friends and neighbors pains my
heart. But sadly, their stories are far from unique. Mr. President, 100
million Americans suffer just like them. Those who suffer are parents,
are children, are friends, are our neighbors. They know that stem cell
research is not a guarantee or imaginable, but they know it holds
promise, they know it holds hope, real hope, yes, scientific hope. They
know it because the world's leading experts tell us so.
In a letter to President Bush, 80 Nobel laureates wrote:
. . . for disorders that prove not to be treatable with
adult stem cells, impeding human pluripotent stem cell
research risks unnecessary delay for millions of patients who
may die or endure needless suffering while the effectiveness
of adult stem cells is evaluated.
This is a statement from 80 Nobel Prize winners.
According to the National Academies of Science, research on both
embryonic and adult stem cells is needed ``to most effectively advance
the scientific and therapeutic potential of regenerative medicine.''
In a letter dated a few days ago, April 9, Dr. Harold Varmus, former
Director of the National Institutes of Health and now the President of
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and also a Nobel laureate wrote:
S. 5 represents an important step forward for human
embryonic stem cell research, a new field that offers great
promise for the replacement of damaged cells, the
understanding of the mechanics of disease, and the
development of the testing of new drugs. Unfortunately,
current Federal policy, in place since 2001, has not kept
pace with the speed of scientific discovery and is today of
limited value to the scientific community.
A man whom I have met, Dr. Jeffery Bluestone, a leading diabetes
researcher and director of the Diabetes Center at the University of
California, San Francisco, said:
We have made great strides in understanding the role of the
immune system in diabetes, but fully pursuing both embryonic
and adult stem cell research will build on our current
successes and could be critical in the ultimate treatment and
cure of patients who suffer from this disease.
I have spoken to him personally, and he has said we are going to
cure, in the next few years, diabetes. They need this ability to go
forward.
The other day I received a letter signed by more than 500 leading
organizations from all around the country. It crossed the political
spectrum. It includes the AARP, the American Medical Association,
Novartis Pharmaceuticals, the Mayo Clinic, the Episcopal Church, Iraq
Veterans for a Cure, the American Diabetes Association, Memorial Sloan-
Kettering Cancer Center, Harvard University, and the Parkinson's Action
Network--to name 11 of 500 organizations.
They spoke with one voice in support of S. 5, writing:
The Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act will move stem cell
research forward in our country. The bill holds promise for
expanding medical breakthroughs and hope for millions of
patients and their loved ones.
Even President Bush's own Director of the National Institutes of
Health, Dr. Elias Zerhouni, endorsed the need to pursue embryonic stem
cell research in addition to alternative forms of research. At a Senate
hearing a few weeks ago he said:
It's not possible for me to see how we can continue the
momentum of science and research with the stem cell lines we
have at NIH. . . . [F]rom my standpoint as NIH director, it
is in the best interests of our scientists, our science, and
our country that we find ways and the nation finds a way to
go full-speed across adult and embryonic stem cells equally.
Americans, by a huge majority, favor stem cell research because they
see the suffering of their own friends and relatives and neighbors,
similar to those described in my introduction today. They hear the
opinions of experts similar to those I just mentioned and they put
their faith in science.
Californians, by ballot, voted, they agreed to spend billions of
their own State Treasury on stem cell research, thus challenging the
obstinacy of President Bush.
Congress has supported this important cause already. Two years ago
the House of Representatives passed something called H.R. 810, the Stem
Cell Research Enhancement Act, with bipartisan support. Last year the
Senate followed suit, as Republicans and Democrats united to pass a
bill that will expand the number of stem cell lines available to
federally funded researchers, while ensuring that strict ethical
guidelines are followed.
Yet when we sent this bipartisan bill to President Bush's desk, he
responded with a veto--his only veto in 6 years, taking away the hope
for millions.
Today, as hundreds of millions of Americans wait for progress, our
scientists, our innovators are marking time, waiting for President Bush
to keep hope alive. The wishes of the American people and the
overwhelming weight of evidence, scientific evidence, should trump the
narrow ideology of President George Bush.
Yesterday and today we debated S. 5, the Stem Cell Research
Enhancement Act, a bill that is similar to the one both the House and
Senate passed last year with strong bipartisan support. The House
passed it again this year. S. 5 authorizes federally funded research on
stem cell lines derived from excess embryos from fertility clinics,
embryos that would otherwise be discarded--discarded, thrown away,
trashed. These potentially discarded embryos could and should be used
to advance lifesaving research.
At the same time, our bill acknowledges the important ethical issues
at stake and enacts stronger research guidelines than exist in the
President's current policy. Because we believe that all forms of
promising research should move forward, S. 5 includes a provision that
supports the advancement of alternative forms of stem cell research
[[Page S4389]]
based on the Santorum-Specter bill that passed the Senate unanimously
last year.
Tonight the Senate will also consider another measure sponsored by
Senators Coleman and Isakson. Similar to our bill, theirs would promote
research in alternative methods for deriving stem cells, some say.
However, unlike our bill, this bill would retain the President's
restrictions on stem cell research. The legislation is, in my opinion,
more political than substantive, more political than scientific. The
Coleman-Isakson bill is not a substitute for S. 5.
I know some of my colleagues will disagree. I am not going to vote
for it. I think S. 30 is a cover vote, and I am not going to provide
any cover. S. 5 is the only bill being discussed that will lift the
restrictions that are impeding scientific research and can lead to new
treatments and cures of many dread conditions and diseases. For the 100
million Americans who suffer from diseases that could be treated as a
result of stem cell research, there is simply no alternative to S. 5.
By supporting the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, we are renewing
our faith in society's steady march forward. Whether expanding our
frontiers, putting a man on the Moon, or mapping the human genome,
America has always embraced great scientific challenges that hold even
greater promise. It is who we are and it is a commitment to the
American people that we must honor.
Jonas Salk, a great American scientist who moved science forward
regarding the dread polio or, as they called it, infantile paralysis,
when he invented the vaccine, once said, ``Our greatest responsibility
is to be good ancestors.''
If we give our scientists the tools to succeed and give hope to the
millions who suffer, we will be doing just that, good ancestors.
I yield any time I have.
Have the yeas and nays been ordered?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. They have not.
Mr. REID. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a
sufficient second.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
Mr. REID. Also, before the Chair enters an order, I ask for the yeas
and nays on the second vote that we have this evening.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a
sufficient second.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the two bills will
be read for the third time, en bloc.
The bills (S. 5 and S. 30) were ordered to be engrossed for a third
reading and were read the third time, en bloc.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill (S. 5) having been read the third
time, the question is, Shall the bill pass?
The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Connecticut (Mr. Dodd),
the Senator from South Dakota (Mr. Johnson), and the Senator from
Louisana (Ms. Landrieu) are necessarily absent.
I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from
Louisana (Ms. Landrieu) would vote ``yea.''
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Cantwell). Are there any other Senators in
the Chamber desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 63, nays 34, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 127 Leg.]
YEAS--63
Akaka
Alexander
Baucus
Bayh
Bennett
Biden
Bingaman
Boxer
Brown
Burr
Byrd
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Clinton
Cochran
Collins
Conrad
Dorgan
Durbin
Feingold
Feinstein
Gregg
Harkin
Hatch
Hutchison
Inouye
Kennedy
Kerry
Klobuchar
Kohl
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Lincoln
Lott
Lugar
McCain
McCaskill
Menendez
Mikulski
Murkowski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Obama
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Rockefeller
Salazar
Sanders
Schumer
Smith
Snowe
Specter
Stabenow
Stevens
Tester
Warner
Webb
Whitehouse
Wyden
NAYS--34
Allard
Bond
Brownback
Bunning
Casey
Chambliss
Coburn
Coleman
Corker
Cornyn
Craig
Crapo
DeMint
Dole
Domenici
Ensign
Enzi
Graham
Grassley
Hagel
Inhofe
Isakson
Kyl
Martinez
McConnell
Nelson (NE)
Roberts
Sessions
Shelby
Sununu
Thomas
Thune
Vitter
Voinovich
NOT VOTING--3
Dodd
Johnson
Landrieu
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas are 63; the nays are 34. Under the
previous order of March 29, 2007, requiring 60 votes for passage of
this bill, the bill is passed.
The bill (S. 5) was passed, as follows:
S. 5
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Stem Cell Research
Enhancement Act of 2007''.
SEC. 2. HUMAN EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH.
Part H of title IV of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 289 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
498C the following:
``SEC. 498D. HUMAN EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH.
``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law (including any regulation or guidance), the Secretary
shall conduct and support research that utilizes human
embryonic stem cells in accordance with this section
(regardless of the date on which the stem cells were derived
from a human embryo) .
``(b) Ethical Requirements.--Human embryonic stem cells
shall be eligible for use in any research conducted or
supported by the Secretary if the cells meet each of the
following:
``(1) The stem cells were derived from human embryos that
have been donated from in vitro fertilization clinics, were
created for the purposes of fertility treatment, and were in
excess of the clinical need of the individuals seeking such
treatment.
``(2) Prior to the consideration of embryo donation and
through consultation with the individuals seeking fertility
treatment, it was determined that the embryos would never be
implanted in a woman and would otherwise be discarded.
``(3) The individuals seeking fertility treatment donated
the embryos with written informed consent and without
receiving any financial or other inducements to make the
donation.
``(c) Guidelines.--Not later than 60 days after the date of
the enactment of this section, the Secretary, in consultation
with the Director of NIH, shall issue final guidelines to
carry out this section.
``(d) Reporting Requirements.--The Secretary shall annually
prepare and submit to the appropriate committees of the
Congress a report describing the activities carried out under
this section during the preceding fiscal year, and including
a description of whether and to what extent research under
subsection (a) has been conducted in accordance with this
section.''.
SEC. 3. ALTERNATIVE HUMAN PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL RESEARCH.
Part H of title IV of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 284 et seq.), as amended by section 2, is further
amended by inserting after section 498D the following:
``SEC. 498E. ALTERNATIVE HUMAN PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL
RESEARCH.
``(a) In General.--In accordance with section 492, the
Secretary shall conduct and support basic and applied
research to develop techniques for the isolation, derivation,
production, or testing of stem cells that, like embryonic
stem cells, are capable of producing all or almost all of the
cell types of the developing body and may result in improved
understanding of or treatments for diseases and other adverse
health conditions, but are not derived from a human embryo.
``(b) Guidelines.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this section, the Secretary, after
consultation with the Director, shall issue final guidelines
to implement subsection (a), that--
``(1) provide guidance concerning the next steps required
for additional research, which shall include a determination
of the extent to which specific techniques may require
additional basic or animal research to ensure that any
research involving human cells using these techniques would
clearly be consistent with the standards established under
this section;
``(2) prioritize research with the greatest potential for
near-term clinical benefit; and
``(3) consistent with subsection (a), take into account
techniques outlined by the President's Council on Bioethics
and any other appropriate techniques and research.
``(c) Reporting Requirements.--Not later than January 1 of
each year, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the
appropriate committees of the Congress a report describing
the activities carried out under this section during the
fiscal year, including a description of the research
conducted under this section.
``(d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed to affect any policy, guideline, or regulation
regarding embryonic stem cell research, human cloning by
somatic cell nuclear transfer, or any other research not
specifically authorized by this section.
[[Page S4390]]
``(e) Definition.--
``(1) In general.--In this section, the term `human embryo'
shall have the meaning given such term in the applicable
appropriations Act.
``(2) Applicable act.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the
term `applicable appropriations Act' means, with respect to
the fiscal year in which research is to be conducted or
supported under this section, the Act making appropriations
for the Department of Health and Human Services for such
fiscal year, except that if the Act for such fiscal year does
not contain the term referred to in paragraph (1), the Act
for the previous fiscal year shall be deemed to be the
applicable appropriations Act.
``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of
fiscal years 2008 through 2010, to carry out this section.''.
Mr. McCONNELL. I move to reconsider the vote and to lay that motion
on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on the passage of S. 30. Under
the previous order, there will be two minutes evenly divided before the
vote. Who yields time?
The Senator from Minnesota is recognized.
Mr. COLEMAN. Madam President, I rise in favor of S. 30. Last year the
Senate passed a similar measure, Specter-Santorum, 100 to nothing. The
reality is that S. 30 goes beyond what Specter-Santorum did. When the
dust settles and S. 5 is vetoed, the only real opportunity to expand
pluripotent embryonic stem cell research is through S. 30. I ask my
colleagues to please put politics aside and to do the right thing.
I plead with my colleagues, on behalf of all of those who have looked
to us and asked for hope to move the science of stem cell research
forward in a way that does not divide but unifies, do what we did last
year, 100 to nothing, keep hope alive, vote in favor of S. 30.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
Mr. HARKIN. Madam President, the bill we just passed, S. 5, does
everything that S. 30 does. That was already said in the debate the
other day. S. 5 has already passed by an overwhelming vote. Everything
that S. 5 does is in S. 30. So the next vote really doesn't make any
difference one way or the other, because by passing S. 5, we allow to
be done what is done in S. 30.
Secondly, I have always taken the position that we should not tell
scientists what to do and what not to do within the ethical guidelines
we have established. What S. 30 says is: Go ahead and investigate. I
don't know if using so-called dead embryos and extracting stem cells
will work. I am not a scientist. But I don't want to handcuff the
scientists and tell them they can't research it. As far as I am
concerned, a vote for S. 30 is saying again what we committed to do in
S. 5.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time has expired. The question is now on
the passage of S. 30. The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk
will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Connecticut (Mr. Dodd)
and the Senator from South Dakota (Mr. Johnson) are necessarily absent.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 70, nays 28, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 128 Leg.]
YEAS--70
Akaka
Alexander
Allard
Bennett
Biden
Bond
Brown
Brownback
Bunning
Burr
Byrd
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Coburn
Cochran
Coleman
Collins
Conrad
Corker
Cornyn
Craig
Crapo
DeMint
Dole
Domenici
Dorgan
Ensign
Enzi
Graham
Grassley
Gregg
Hagel
Harkin
Hatch
Hutchison
Inhofe
Isakson
Kennedy
Kerry
Klobuchar
Kyl
Landrieu
Leahy
Lott
Lugar
Martinez
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Murkowski
Nelson (NE)
Pryor
Reed
Roberts
Salazar
Sessions
Shelby
Smith
Snowe
Specter
Stevens
Sununu
Thomas
Thune
Vitter
Voinovich
Warner
Webb
Whitehouse
NAYS--28
Baucus
Bayh
Bingaman
Boxer
Cantwell
Cardin
Clinton
Durbin
Feingold
Feinstein
Inouye
Kohl
Lautenberg
Levin
Lieberman
Lincoln
Menendez
Mikulski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Obama
Reid
Rockefeller
Sanders
Schumer
Stabenow
Tester
Wyden
NOT VOTING--2
Dodd
Johnson
The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this vote, the yeas are 70; the nays are
28. Under the order of March 29, 2007, requiring 60 votes for the
passage of this bill, the bill is passed.
The bill (S. 30) was passed, as follows:
S. 30
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Hope Offered through
Principled and Ethical Stem Cell Research Act'' or the ``HOPE
Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
It is the purpose of this Act to--
(1) intensify research that may result in improved
understanding of or treatments for diseases and other adverse
health conditions; and
(2) promote the derivation of pluripotent stem cell lines
without the creation of human embryos for research purposes
and without the destruction or discarding of, or risk of
injury to, a human embryo or embryos other than those that
are naturally dead.
SEC. 3. HUMAN PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL RESEARCH.
Part H of title IV of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 289 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section
498C the following:
``SEC. 498D. HUMAN PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL RESEARCH.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct and support
basic and applied research to develop techniques for the
isolation, derivation, production, or testing of stem cells,
including pluripotent stem cells that have the flexibility of
embryonic stem cells (whether or not they have an embryonic
source), that may result in improved understanding of or
treatments for diseases and other adverse health conditions,
provided that the isolation, derivation, production, or
testing of such cells will not involve--
``(1) the creation of a human embryo or embryos for
research purposes; or
``(2) the destruction or discarding of, or risk of injury
to, a human embryo or embryos other than those that are
naturally dead.
``(b) Guidelines.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this section, the Secretary, after
consultation with the Director of NIH, shall issue final
guidelines that--
``(1) provide guidance concerning the next steps required
for additional research, which shall include a determination
of the extent to which specific techniques may require
additional animal research to ensure that any research
involving human cells using these techniques would clearly be
consistent with the standards established under subsection
(a);
``(2) prioritize research with the greatest potential for
near-term clinical benefit;
``(3) consistent with standards established under
subsection (a), take into account techniques outlined by the
President's Council on Bioethics and any other appropriate
techniques and research; and
``(4) in the case of research involving stem cells from a
naturally dead embryo, require assurances from grant
applicants that no alteration of the timing, methods, or
procedures used to create, maintain, or intervene in the
development of a human embryo was made solely for the purpose
of deriving the stem cells.
``(c) Reporting Requirements.--Not later than January 1 of
each year, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the
appropriate committees of the Congress a report describing
the activities carried out under this section during the
fiscal year, including a description of the research
conducted under this section.
``(d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed as altering the policy in effect on the date of
enactment of this section regarding the eligibility of stem
cell lines for funding by the National Institutes of Health.
``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out
this section.
``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Naturally dead.--The term `naturally dead' means
having naturally and irreversibly lost the capacity for
integrated cellular division, growth, and differentiation
that is characteristic of an organism, even if some cells of
the former organism may be alive in a disorganized state.
``(2) Human embryo or embryos.--The term `human embryo or
embryos' includes any organism, not protected as a human
subject under part 46 of title 45, Code of Federal
Regulations, as of the date of enactment of this section,
that is derived by fertilization, parthenogenesis, cloning,
or any other means from one or more human gametes or human
diploid cells.
``(3) Risk of injury.--The term `risk of injury' means
subjecting a human embryo or embryos to risk of injury or
death greater than that allowed for research on fetuses in
[[Page S4391]]
utero under section 46.204(b) of title 45, Code of Federal
Regulations, and section 498(b) of this Act.''.
SEC. 4. NATIONAL AMNIOTIC AND PLACENTAL STEM CELL BANK.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services
shall enter into a contract with the Institute of Medicine
for the conduct of a study to recommend an optimal structure
for an amniotic and placental stem cell bank program and to
address pertinent issues to maximize the potential of such
technology, including collection, storage, standards setting,
information sharing, distribution, reimbursement, research,
and outcome measures. In conducting such study, the Institute
should receive input from relevant experts including the
existing operators of federal tissue bank programs and the
biomedical research programs within the Department of
Defense.
(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Institute of Medicine shall
complete the study under subsection (a) and submit to the
Secretary of Health and Human Services and the appropriate
committees of Congress a report on the results of such study.
Mr. COLEMAN. I move to reconsider the vote.
Mr. BROWNBACK. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Louisiana.
Vote Explanation
Ms. LANDRIEU. Madam President, I want the record to reflect that I
would have voted ``aye'' on the previous vote on S. 5 had I been able
to be here. I was traveling today for a funeral and was unable to get
back. Subsequently, I voted ``aye'' on the bill that just passed. But I
would like the record to reflect that had I been able to make the first
vote, I would have voted ``aye.''
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