As covered in ScienceInsider blog, the Senate has convened a panel to discuss its response to Judge Lambeth's ruling last month that government funds cannot be used at all for human embryonic stem cell research as this would be in violation of the Dickey-Wicker Amendment.
Senate Panel Weighs In on Threat to Stem Cell Research - ScienceInsider.
Democratic Senate heavy-weights like Tom Harkin (IA) and Arlen Specter (PA), proponents of the research, indicate they are looking at introducing laws that would permanently reverse the effect of the Judge's ruling and restore certainty to the field (in terms of funding anyway).
Senator Arlen Specter (D–PA), a longtime champion of stem cell research who introduced a bill to make hESC research legal on Monday, warned that the outcome of the legal process "is very, very uncertain." He added that Congress "had better get busy."
Posted by Bruce Lehr September 19th 2010.
Sen Specter comments on need for Senate "to get busy" on introducing/passing stem cell legislation
http://www.silobreaker.com/specter-urges-congress-to-act-on-stemcell-rules-5_2263732032771194947
Posted by: bigredbruce | 09/19/2010 at 08:29 PM
Here's a primer on the Stem Cell legal history from the Science Insider
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/329/5998/1450
Posted by: bigredbruce | 09/19/2010 at 02:40 PM