John Kerry's position on

Stem Cell Research: Embryonic stem cells are found in fertilized embryos less than a week old, which can be produced by in vitro fertilization. It is said that stem cells have the potential to cure diseases such as Parkinsons, Alzheimers and diabetes, and has the ability to repair vital organs. In August of 2001, Bush signed an executive order limiting federal research funding for stem cell research to 78 embryonic stem cell lines previously in existence, but only 19 are available and may be outdated and many have become contaminated with mouse feeder cells which make their use for humans uncertain. 

Description of the Candidate's Position: Kerry, along with forty-seven other Senators have urged President Bush to lift restrictions on stem cell research, that he claims will provide scientist with the room to research the cells to their full potential. Kerry states that the cells Bush has allowed to be researched are uncertain and may not produce the same outcome of embryonic stem cells. He believes that uncontaminated cells have the greatest value to researchers and patients and that the cells Bush is allowing are out of date because they are almost three years old stating, restricting doctors to cells developed with outmoded techniques is like forcing NASA engineers today to work with technology from the old Apollo moon missions. Without federal funding, scientists are not able to find new cures and treatments for disease that have plagued Americans for centuries and America is losing the international lead in stem cell research. link

Quotation from the Candidate: "Millions of children and adults suffer from incurable diseases like diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, heart disease, cancer and spinal cord injuries - diseases which could one day be cured by stem cell therapy. And yet on August 9, 2001, President Bush blocked researchers from finding treatments for such diseases by enacting a ban on any new stem cell lines created after that date." August 9, 2004, from the Kerry website. link

Assessment of the Proposal:

Positive: The Cato Institute brings up the fact that stem cell research should not be a political issue. No one, including Bush, has proposed banning the research and currently there are nine private stem cell research centers, Harvard being among the largest who have recently unveiled 17 new stem cells lines. The Cato Institute says that the research is only about money and whether federal funds should be spent on the quest to develop new treatments for previously incurable diseases, stating that science has become a political issue only because government money is involved.

Negative: Dr. Richard Swenson, from the University Of Illinois School Of Medicine spoke at a Heritage lecture on the topic of governmental spending on the medical field. Swenson states that currently, the United States spends $120 billion on the health care industry alone and that amount will only continue to rise if the government continues to fund programs such as stem cell research. Spending continues to rise because the health care industry is using more expensive technology. Swenson is a supporter of researching adult stem cells without the help of federal money. If we do adult research, and we use non-federal spending, then we could pursue a lot of work and perhaps make some real progress in an ethical way. Yet many politicians want the federal spending and they want that funding for embryonic research.

Comparison: The major comparison would be that Bush is only willing to fund stem cell research when it uses adult stem cells and stem cells from already existing embryonic lines. Kerry would like to lift restrictions on stem cell research and fund all research done on stem cells. Also, Kerry would like to lift the restrictions on stem cell research that President Bush put into place three years prior, which state the federal funding will only be given for research of existing stem cells lines and not fund research done with embryonic stem cells. Kerry believes that the medical community and patients could benefit greatly from additional research that could be done on stem cells if restrictions were lifted. Bush believes firmly in the restrictions because of the way that embryonic stem cells are produced. He believes that all embryonic cells have a chance at becoming a life and by hindering in any way the development of an embryo in the womb is similar to aborting a child.

Link to George Bush's issue page

Sources:

Why it's Time for Faith-Based Health Plans,

Remarks of Ron Reagan on the Importance of Stem Cell Research,

National Institute of Health: Stem Cell Basics 

Edwards Calls for an End to Stem Cell Ban and a Return to Scientific Excellence in America,