Why Frist has embraced stem cell research

On July 29, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist formally announced from the floor of the Senate that he was breaking with Presi dent George W. Bush on the subject of stem cell research. He followed up with a highly publicized phone call to the White House to tell the president in person that he was reversing a position he had previously supported. President Bush is reported to have told Frist to “follow his conscience.”

Before his very public break with Bush, Frist had been one of the darlings of the Christian right. He was not just a supporter of the Bush policy on stem cell research. A medical doctor who stridently opposed the right of women to control their own bodies, Frist had thrilled the right when he led the fight to have Congress intervene in the tragic Terri Schiavo case. His name was prominently circulated as a presidential candidate in 2008, and he had openly curried favor with what was perceived to be the reactionary “Republican base” of voters.

Immediately, dozens of right-wing religious leaders and advocacy groups, in blistering language, attacked Frist for abandoning the Bush policy.

Referring to the cells as though they were people, Lanier Swann, government relations director of Concerned Women for America, said, “It certainly gives one pause in trusting his commitment to the sanctity of life.”

The Christian Defense Coalition said Frist should not expect its support in the 2008 Republican presidential primaries, while the Catholic bishops of Pennsylvania took the opportunity to issue a pointed reminder that the church views embryonic stem cell research as “morally unacceptable.”

Catholic League President William Donohue called Frist “Dr. Duplicity.” An editorial in the conservative Weekly Standard magazine said “The incoherence of Frist’s position is staggering,” while the National Pro-Life Action Center lambasted what it called Frist’s “sell-out.” (Washington Post, July 30)

But Bill Frist also had his supporters, or, more accurately, Frist is now supporting another whole group who want government funding for embryonic stem cell research. Many, like Frist, have imposing right-wing credentials.

A bill which would fund research using stem cells derived from human embryos has already passed the Republican-dominated House of Representatives. The same bill is expected to pass easily in the Senate, even though Bush has vowed to veto it. And individual states, including California, have pledged to spend millions—even billions—of dollars to conduct stem cell research.

Most of the mainstream media and political pundits have treated the story as a case of morals vs. politics. Some have even defended Frist as someone who made a principled decision to do what he thought was right. Since Frist’s departure from Bush’s position was only a “minor disagreement,” says George Will, a nationally syndicated columnist, why should it be “inexplicable why a physician would be receptive to a potential expansion of medicine’s healing arsenal?” (Washington Post, Aug. 4)

As we shall see, something much more powerful than high-minded principle was behind Frist’s decision to abandon his erstwhile allies.

Stem cell research promises health ...

It is certainly true that the science of stem cell research offers great promise and hope for medical breakthroughs that could greatly alleviate human suffering.

Research on stem cells, especially those from early embryos, is especially promising because it offers a way to turn back the biological clock.

Current drugs can do no more than slow the progress of degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. Stem cells may one day replace cells and rebuild tissues, perhaps even organs, helping to restore patients to the way they were before they became ill.

For the first time, European researchers have identified muscle stem cells, suggesting a treatment for muscular dystrophy, according to a recent report in the journal Nature. South Korea’s Hwang Woo-suk made headlines in May when he created the world’s first embryonic stem cells that genetically match injured or sick patients, a major step toward growing patients’ own replacement tissue to treat diseases.

Among the tissues that could be repaired are those of the central nervous system and spinal cord, offering hope to millions who suffer from brain and spinal cord injuries and diseases.

There are now already stem cell treatments for strokes, and scientists are looking for cures for diabetes and heart disease. In Ecuador, 10 heart-failure patients who received fetal stem cell injections were all showing signs of rapid recovery three months after the treatment, according to surgeons who performed the first-time procedure. (PBS Online News Hour, June 20)

In 2001, Bush killed most research on embryonic stem cells by limiting federal funding for research to 15 lines that had already been developed from frozen embryos left over from in vitro fertility attempts. He explicitly disallowed the use of any additional embryos, even ones slated to be destroyed anyway. The new bill that Bill Frist now supports differs from Bush’s policy only in that it would allow additional frozen embryos to be used from the same stock of in vitro leftovers. U.S. law already strictly prohibits the cloning of any human embryos.

But Frist’s break with Bush, small as it might seem, is very important to certain people.

... and immense profits

Red Herring, Inc., is a privately held media company headquartered in Belmont, Calif. According to its website, it exists to provide the corporate world with information about “innovation, technology, financing and entrepreneurial activity.” It claims to provide a “deep understanding of venture capital and capital markets.” (Red Herring .com)

On July 29, Red Herring reported Frist’s decision with the following headline: “Stem cell stocks rise after U.S. Senate majority leader breaks with White House on federal funds for stem cell research.” The article went on to detail how Frist’s announcement had helped lift the shares of three stem cell-related companies: Geron, Aastrom Biosciences and StemCells. It continued with an analysis of why the stock market responded favorably to the announcement.

“With limits on federal funding, scientists have had to depend largely on private money for research. But venture companies have been wary of funding these firms as many are in early stages. Scientists have worried that the U.S. will lag behind other nations, where governments are more supportive of the research.

“California voters approved a bond initiative in November 2004 that will provide $3 billion in taxpayer money for stem cell research. If the U.S. changes its policy and lifts existing barriers on stem cell research, it will have a better shot at being the global leader in the field.” (Red Herring.com, July 29)

Why should free market billionaires and stock marketeers care about government-funded research?

“With strict limits on federal funding, scientists must rely largely on private money. But venture capitalists have largely stayed away from stem cell companies because most are still in early stages. ‘VCs [venture capitalists] enter after the research is completed,’ says Robert Bellas Jr., a general partner at Morgenthaler Ventures.” (Red Herring, June 20)

In other words, the biomedical corporations want to profit from stem cell research, but they don’t want to risk their own money. They want the government to pay for the research and then turn it over to them so they can patent it and charge sick people enormous sums for the new life-saving technology!

Bill Frist is a staunch advocate of this kind of “free market medicine.”

Frist entered the Senate already a millionaire, thanks to his father and brother. They founded what has become HCA Inc., the largest hospital chain in the U.S., with over 200 hospitals and revenues of $21.8 billion in 2003.

“Over the years, HCA derived about one -third of its revenue from the federal government’s Medicaid and Medicare programs. In addition to owning the largest number of hospitals, HCA has another dubious distinction: The company has defrauded Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE, the military’s health care program, of more money than any other health care provider in the U.S.” (Donald L. Bartlett and James B. Steele, “Critical Condition: How Health Care in America Became Big Business and Bad Medicine”)

Most of the government money for stem cell research will go to large universities and teaching hospitals, often linked to each other. It is a safe bet that the Frist medical empire will profit immensely from this government spending. But there is a problem.

Dr. Xiangzhong Yang, director of the Center for Regenerative Biology at the University of Connecticut, had this to say last June: “Scientifically, the U.S. remains the strongest in the world. But we can’t touch nuclear transfer in human cells, and because of this, our overall scientific teams are now way behind other countries.” (Red Herring, June 20)

Frist and a section of the U.S. ruling class worry they can be left behind on an international scale. Dozens of countries are already ahead of the U.S. in stem cell research. These include South Korea, China and most of the European countries. Many have more liberal policies about cloning and research and provide significant government funding. South Korea has even established an embryonic stem cell bank.

U.S. capitalists know that if these researchers make crucial discoveries before they do, their capitalists will be the first to profit from them.

These countries cannot compete with the cash-rich U.S. biomedical giants and venture capitalists who have billions of dollars to invest. But at present, U.S. law forbids embryonic stem cell research and even bars purchasing and importing the tech nology from abroad. (Red Herring.com)

The U.S. capitalist class has done very well under Bush, who drastically cut their taxes and launched an anti-worker offensive. They know he gets needed foot soldiers at election time from the Christian right wing. But a significant section of them—especially those with connections to the biomedical industry—won’t let this stymie what they see as an unprecedented golden opportunity.

It is difficult to overstate the pure greed and rapaciousness of capitalists when they see a chance to make a profit. A British geneticist made the following remarks in 2001 shortly after attending a conference about the human genome project, which had just mapped the entire DNA of the human species:

“I sat aghast in the audience as patent lawyers and biotechnicians debated the pros and cons of patenting genes. ... At one point an enthusiastic manager from a large pharmaceutical company stood up to address the audience.

“He ... illustrated his point with a pie chart showing the division of ownership of the human genome, the sum total of all human genes, among major corporations. The pie was sliced up and the portions assigned. ... Patents are being filed every day claiming ownership and a commercial monopoly on our genes. As I sat there, I had the overwhelming feeling and very disturbing sensation that parts of me and my past were being bought and sold.” (Bryan Sykes, “The Seven Daughters of Eve,” p. 296)

Progressive and working people from all nations must not only resist the feudal religious and semi-fascist bigots who seek to hold back scientific progress. We must also make sure that the benefits of science are not appropriated for the benefit of a few profiteers, and insure that the promise of stem cell research can truly benefit humanity.