hESC Stanford

http://ora.stanford.edu/hesc/

Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research

President Obama Lifts Ban on Stem Cell Research

On March 9, 2009, President Barrack Obama signed an Executive Order removing barriers to responsible scientific research involving human stem cells:

"For the past 8 years, the authority of the Department of Health and Human Services, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to fund and conduct human embryonic stem cell research has been limited by Presidential actions. The purpose of this order is to remove these limitations on scientific inquiry, to expand NIH support for the exploration of human stem cell research, and in so doing to enhance the contribution of America's scientists to important new discoveries and new therapies for the benefit of humankind."

Read the Executive Order and the Fact Sheet on the Executive Order.

Removal of Required Training

The limitations imposed by the past administration caused Stanford and peer institutions to impose burdensome policies, procedures, and required training on our investigators and other research personnel. This new executive order liberates us from this requirement and we have removed the "ORA-1127, Human Embryonic Stem Cell (hESC) Research Procedures Tutorial" from our curriculum.

Required Procedures and Forms

There is no longer a "HESCRT" Form to complete, but you must still check "Yes" or "No" to Human Stem Cells on the PDRF, then check the SCRO website to see if a protocol must be filed.