US House Moves to Block New Reviews of Fetal Tissue Research

An amendment to the 2020 funding bill would prohibit the Trump administration from convening ethics advisory boards to review funding proposals involving the tissues.

Written byShawna Williams

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In the wake of an announcement last week that research using fetal tissue at the National Institutes of Health will halt, and that other federally funded research using the tissue will now require review by ethics advisory boards, the US House voted today (June 13) to include an amendment in the 2020 federal budget that would prevent such boards from being formed.

The amendment passed the Democrat-led House of Representatives in a 225 to 193 vote, Science reports. But it is not clear whether it will become law, as the House will need to agree with the Republican-led Senate on a final spending bill, which would then need to be signed by President Donald Trump in order to take effect. No House Republicans voted for the amendment.

In a letter sent yesterday to lawmakers who support the amendment, a group of research universities, patient advocacy organizations, and ...

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Meet the Author

Shawna Williams
Shawna was an editor at The Scientist from 2017 through 2022. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Colorado College and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Previously, she worked as a freelance editor and writer, and in the communications offices of several academic research institutions. As news director, Shawna assigned and edited news, opinion, and in-depth feature articles for the website on all aspects of the life sciences. She is based in central Washington State, and is a member of the Northwest Science Writers Association and the National Association of Science Writers.
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