C. A. Dutch Ruppersberger: “I am not in favor of cloning humans for reproduction but I do favor the medical research that the Greenwood substitute…”

“I am not in favor of cloning humans for reproduction but I do favor the medical research that the Greenwood substitute would provide. Every day in this country hundreds of thousands of Americans suffer from the effects of degenerative disease and spinal cord injuries. As a young attorney I was in a car accident where I nearly lost my life. Maryland's Emergency Medical Shock Trauma system saved my life. Medical research saved my life. To this day I continue to serve as vice chair of the Shock Trauma Board. My work with shock trauma has put me in contact with a number of people who are suffering from degenerative diseases and spinal cord injuries. My good friend Burt Greenwood from Baltimore has Lou Gehrig's disease. Every day he fights to stay with us. Every day he hopes that stem cell research someday will give him a chance. That is why I stand in support of the Greenwood amendment. We must make continued research a reality and not just a hope for the families that we represent. Let me quote Dr. Jeffrey Rothstein, a professor of neurology and the director for ALS research at Johns Hopkins University: No responsible scientist wants to clone a human. Responsible scientists want to continue the research for cures to degenerative disease. Stem cell research holds the only hope for thousands of suffering Americans.”