La BioMed Supports Stem Cell Initiative

In coalition with major health and business groups throughout California, LA BioMed has indicated its support for the California Stem Cell Bond Issue Initiative that recently qualified for November's ballot. The initiative will allocate money from a $3 billion bond to fund promising, California-based stem cell research.

The initiative will distribute an average of $295 million per year over a 10-year period to fund stem cell research at California's universities and other advanced medical research facilities. It will fund all aspects of stem cell therapy development from basic research through clinical trials to the actual delivery of therapies to patients.

Kenneth P. Trevett, President and CEO of LA BioMed, recently issued the following statement about the initiative:

The stem cell initiative is a necessary step in the pursuit of scientific research because federal funding for stem cell research has been limited. Unquestionably, stem cell therapy is potentially the most important medical advance since the discovery of antibiotics. This critically important statewide initiative closes the federal funding gap and sets a new state model for advancing scientific research. From an economic standpoint, California will benefit from patents and royalties that result from the research. Construction of research facilities and new research jobs will generate millions of dollars in new tax revenues for California. More importantly, if stem cell research results in a single cure that reduces healthcare costs by just one percent, it would pay for itself several times over during the following decade and save lives along the way.

Mr. Trevett is available to speak the merits of the stem cell initiative. To contact him, telephone or e-mail the Communicatio
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