Contact: Laura Smith, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2162
MADISON – Governor Jim Doyle announced the state is the lead filer of an amicus brief filed today in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Sherley v. Sebelius. Today’s action seeks to reverse a decision by the federal district court on the preliminary injunction that would prevent the National Institutes of Health (NIH) from funding embryonic stem cell research. The Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research and the Genetics Policy Institute are supporting Wisconsin in this brief.
Currently, the stem cell case is proceeding in two venues. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is hearing an appeal on the preliminary injunction. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia is hearing the original lawsuit.
Last week, the Governor announced the state joined CAMR to defend NIH stem cell standards that were challenged in the original lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
“Families in Wisconsin and around the world are depending on the stem cell research conducted in Wisconsin to cure illness, alleviate suffering and save lives,” Governor Doyle said. “We support the federal government’s efforts to continue funding ground-breaking scientific research using embryonic stem cells under the clear, ethically sound guidelines issued by the National Institutes of Health last year. It is in the best interest of patients and families that we pursue all the promising avenues of stem cell research, and studying embryonic stem cells is essential to scientific discovery and future breakthroughs.”
On September 9, Governor Doyle sent a letter to Wisconsin’s Congressional Delegation urging quick action by Congress to definitively allow for the federal funding of stem cell research. View the letter at: http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/docview.asp?docid=20209.
Since taking office, Governor Doyle has vastly expanded Wisconsin’s investment in stem cell research. In addition to being home to world renowned stem cell companies that leverage millions of dollars in investment, Wisconsin is home to The Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, The UW-Madison Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Center, The Waisman Center, The Medical College of Wisconsin, The Blood Center of Wisconsin, WiCell and others. Wisconsin is home to more than 600 bioscience companies, 11 stem cell companies and 34,000 jobs in the bioscience industry, leading the way toward life-changing medical research. In 2008, Governor Doyle received the Genetics Policy Institute’s National Leadership Award in recognition of his support of stem cell research and his strategic goal to invest $750 million in biotechnology and stem cell research.
