Massachusetts

In 2005, Massachusetts was already a center of biotechnology research and production when the state legislature overrode the veto of Governor Mitt Romney to allow the use of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) from embryos created for reproductive purposes and from somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) in research. In language remarkably lucid and direct, the new law positioned Massachusetts not merely to sanction ESC research but to “actively foster research and therapies in the life sciences and regenerative medicine by permitting research and clinical applications involving the derivation and use of human embryonic stem cells.” It was not until 2007, when Governor Deval Patrick proposed $1 billion in funding for scientific research, that the state’s commitment to support stem cell research with money as well ...