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To the List: Late last night I received an e-mail from Rachel Simon of the Philadelphia Inquirer. She had spoken with Senator Specter after the Senate hearing at which Richard Pikunis, Jr., spoke. She wrote, "Sen. Specter, who spoke very highly of Richard, told me that he has indeed decided to sponsor legislation to get the federal government to fund stem cell research. He said he decided after last month's hearing - and that my article, and Richard, helped convince him he was right!!!" Following are excerpts of Senator Specter's remarks at the hearing, "It is my hope that we might move to legislation to lift the ban at a very early stage because of the urgency involved here with the potential for stem cell research to deal with so many serious diseases. I think every day that we lose on lifting the NIH ban costs lives. Perhaps every hour that we lose on lifting the NIH ban costs lives." To Richard, he added "When you talk about your personal situation, that is precisely the sense of urgency which I think ought to move the Congress to get this done." The Senator added, "This is a late-breaking development. It ought to have broad, if not unanimous, support." In a post-hearing interview the Senator said, "I'm going to put it (the legislation) in on the 19th. That's the first day we can put it in." As Rachel Simon said, "Maybe this will usher in a round of good luck for both Richard and the PD community. I hope so!" Dolores Gross [log in to unmask]