November 30, 2001

Bush Creates White House Council on Bioethics

President George W. Bush Nov. 28 signed an executive order establishing an 18-member White House Council on Bioethics. The President announced his intent to create the panel during his Aug. 9 address on the federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research. The Council will be chaired by Leon Kass, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Chicago. Other members of the Council, as well as the selection process and criteria, have not been announced.

According to the executive order, the Council "shall not be responsible for the review and approval of specific projects or for devising and overseeing regulations for specific government agencies." However, the stated mission of the Council is very broad. The executive order says that the Council's mission is to:

• Undertake fundamental inquiry into the human and moral significance of developments in biomedical and behavioral science and technology;
• Explore specific ethical and policy questions related to these developments;
• Provide a forum for a national discussion of bioethical issues;
• Facilitate a greater understanding of bioethical issues; and
• Explore possibilities for useful international collaboration on bioethical issues.

Information: Tony Mazzaschi, AAMC Division of Biomedical and Health Sciences Research, 202-828-0059.