HHS Sec. Nominee Sebelius Says She Does Not Foresee Changes To Abortion Policy
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) during recent Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearings said that she does not expect to issue new abortion regulations if confirmed as HHS secretary, the Kansas City Star reports. Sebelius, responding to a question from Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), said that she is "personally opposed to abortion" and that her Roman Catholic faith "teaches me that all life is sacred." However, she added that she would "implement and uphold the law" if Congress or the courts change current abortion laws, prompting new federal abortion regulations. Sebelius also said that as governor of Kansas, she has tried to "reduce unwanted pregnancies and thus curtail the need for abortion." She said she vetoed abortion-related legislation because of privacy concerns or a threat to "constitutional rights."
Sebelius was answering written questions submitted by members of the committee, and her responses were the first time she has publicly spoken with committee members about abortion during her confirmation process. According to the Star, many antiabortion groups have criticized Sebelius' nomination. The Senate is expected to continue the nominations process when it returns from the spring recess (Helling, Kansas City Star, 4/11).
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European Court orders Portugal to pay compensation to 'Ship of Death'
The European Court of Human Rights has ordered the government of Portugal to pay compensation to the abortion organizations that operate the “Ship of Death,” which was prevented from entering Portuguese waters by the country’s Navy in 2004.
According to the ruling, which the Portuguese Socialist government said it would not appeal, Portugal must pay $2,660 to each of the three organizations that manage the Dutch ship “Borndiep,” known as the “Ship of Death” because abortions are performed on deck in international waters near countries where the procedure is illegal.
The Court said Portugal violated article 10 of the Convention, which deals with freedom of expression, even though at the time abortion was not legal in the country and the “Ship of Death” was not engaged in an act of “expression” but in the performing of abortions in violation of Portuguese law.
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Participation In Antiabortion-Rights Groups Has Had 'Noticeable Spike' Since Obama Took
President Obama's short tenure has "been like an extended recruiting drive for the anti-abortion movement, reinvigorating a constituency he sought to neutralize during the campaign," Politico reports.
According to Politico, Obama's moves to lift family planning restrictions on international aid, rescind the HHS "conscience" rule and lift restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research have angered many groups opposed to abortion rights. In addition, some of Obama's personnel decisions -- including the nomination of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) for HHS secretary -- have "caused alarm" among abortion-rights opponents, Politico reports.
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Al Gore Supports Ethical iPS Cells Over Embryonic
Al Gore has thrown his considerable weight (and his support, too) behind ethically-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells.) Gore is part of a $20 million venture capital investment to develop iPS cells for drug development and basic research. The funding will support collaboration between iZumi Bio, Inc., and Kyoto University's Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, who was the first in 2006 to develop the iPS cell reprogramming technique; the technique was named "Breakthrough of the Year" by Science for 2008. While iPS cells are virtually identical in characteristics to embryonic stem cells, they are made without the use of embryos, eggs, or cloning. Gore's support for iPS cells is a welcome counterweight of priority for real stem cell science against the over-exaggerated hype for embryonic stem cells and cloning.
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More Diabetic Patients Treated with Adult Stem Cells
Another success for adult stem cells, again treating Type I (juvenile) diabetes patients. As reported in a study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 20 of 23 patients became insulin-independent after treatment with their own bone marrow adult stem cells. This report is a follow-up to the previous report by Voltarelli & Burt in 2007, and includes new patients as well as a longer period to follow the patients. Some of the patients have gone for four years insulin-free. The authors note in the paper that this adult stem cell treatment "remains the only treatment capable of reversing type 1 diabetes in humans."
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Two Reports Show Planned Parenthood's Main Focus: Abortion
Despite a massive public relations effort to distance itself from one of its main sources of income, two new reports, including the group's annual report, show a huge increase in Planned Parenthood's abortion business. In addition to the annual report, American Life League also released a report last month showing an increase in the number of Planned Parenthood facilities performing medical abortions. “Planned Parenthood has increased its number of abortions to a total of 305,310 which is over 15,000 more babies than it reported to have killed in 2006,” said Marie Hahnenberg, ALL researcher.
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