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WASHINGTON FAX February 16, 2005 Stem Cell Policy Expansion Supported By Majority Of Americans, Survey Shows Most Americans support expanding President Bush’s policy on stem cell research to allow federal funding on stem cells developed from excess embryos from in vitro fertilization clinics, according to the results of a new survey. Overall, the survey, commissioned by the Civil Society Institute’s Results for America (RFA) project, shows that a majority of Americans support stem cell research, with more than three out of five (63%) backing it. RFA notes that the results are up slightly from a similar survey conducted June 2004 in the wake of the death of former President Ronald Reagan, when 60% said they supported stem cell research. When supplied with the information that embryonic stem cell lines approved for federal funding are contaminated from being grown on mouse feeder cells and unusable, 69% of those surveyed favor expanding federal guidelines for funding human embryonic stem cell research, while 26% oppose such an expansion, a survey states. The survey, released Feb. 15, was conducted Feb. 3-6 by the Opinion Research Corporation (ORC). The results are based on telephone interviews conducted with a sample of 1,022 adults. Support is highest among self-identified liberals (83%) especially when compared to those who consider themselves conservative (45%). When asked unaided if they support stem cell research, 72% of moderates agreed. The results also are a “dramatic change” from a survey conducted by ORC in 2001 that showed the nation evenly split on support for stem cell research, Graham Hueber, senior project manager at ORC, said at a same-day teleconference. The survey carries extra importance, RFA says, given the imminent introduction of bipartisan legislation in Congress advocating the expansion of federal support for stem cell research. (see Washington Fax 2/7/05b) In addition to being asked if they support stem cell research without supplemental information, respondents were asked whether they supported the science after being provided with a detailed description of the research process, including information about embryonic stem cells’ ability to differentiate into any type of cell in the human body and the number of different conditions that could be treated by stem cell research. After hearing this description, support for stem cell research increased to 72% and opposition decreased to 25%. The survey found that support for stem cell research is highest among those with household incomes of $75,000 or more (77%) and college graduates (74%). Seventy percent of respondents support introducing a bipartisan bill that would expand federal funding for stem cell research. Likewise, three out of four participants (76%) support state-level stem cell measures, with 21% in opposition. California and New Jersey, among a number of other states, are preparing initiatives to bankroll stem cell research using alternate funding sources. (see Washington Fax 1/18/05) “The possibility of a stem cell ‘brain drain’ because of this country’s limit on the amount of federally supported research is uncertain among these respondents,” RFA says. “Forty-two percent are not concerned that top medical experts will leave the United States and relocate to countries that support stem cell research to a greater extent than the U.S. does now. Thirty-eight percent are concerned that this will happen and 16% think it is a possibility.” Civil Society Institute President Pam Solo said that the results are an indication that stem cell research “is not an issue that is going to go away.” Moreover, the growing number of state-level legislative initiatives to fund stem cell research is, according to Solo, sending a clear signal to federal lawmakers: “either get out front and lead on this issue or be overtaken by all of the clamoring for stem cell research that is bubbling up from the grassroots level.” Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.), who co-sponsored the measure to expand federal support for stem cell research, said that the survey results bolster the argument in support of broadening the President’s policy. “There is no question that as the American public learns more about exactly what embryonic stem cell research is -- that the stem cells come from embryos produced from the in vitro fertilization process and are in excess of the couple's needs and would be discarded anyways -- support on both sides of the aisle continues to grow,” he said. -- Andrew J. Hawkins Results for America’s “American Views on Stem Cell Research” can be viewed at: http://resultsforamerica.org/calendar/files/021505%20CSI%20RFA%20stem%20c ell%20survey%20report%20FINAL.pdf (C) 2005 WASHINGTON FAX, an established news and information service specializing in science policy [http://www.washingtonfax.com]. 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