September 9, 2015

House OK’s Bipartisan Stem Cell Bill; Smith Legislation Authorizes $265M over Five Years for Bone Marrow, Cord Blood Programs

On the very first day of the fall session, the House took up and passed vital legislation authored by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) to continue America’s bone marrow and cord blood donor registry.

Sponsored by Smith with lead co-sponsor Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA), the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act of 2015, H.R. 2820, ensures that two collaborative programs that support treatment and therapies derived from adult stem cell lines will not expire at the end of the federal fiscal year, Sept. 30.

Under the legislation, the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program will be authorized for five years at $30 million annually, while the National Cord Blood Inventory is authorized at $23 million annually for a five-year period. Smith authored the original law (The Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005—P.L. 109-129) that created the national cord blood program and expanded the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program.

Click here for the originating article from NRL News Today