mr. speaker , as a proud cosponsor of h.r. 810 , the stem cell research enhancement act of 2005 , i rise in support of this legislation . 
those of us who have long supported the increased accessibility and possibilities of ethical stem cell research appreciate the opportunity the leadership has granted us by allowing a vote on this legislation today . 
i would also like to thank representatives castle and degette for their continued persistence to bring this bill to the floor . 
we have all known someone who has suffered from lou gehrig 's disease , alzheimer 's disease , parkinson 's disease , multiple sclerosis , rett syndrome , lupus , pulmonary fibrosis , juvenile diabetes , autism , cystic fibrosis , osteoporosis , spinal cord injuries , heart disease or cancer . 
by passing h.r. 810 , we have the opportunity to help all of those individuals who are living with these and many other illnesses and injuries . 
embryonic stem cell research holds the key to decreasing the pain and suffering of so many of our friends and family members . 
furthermore , we have a moral obligation to do everything we can to help the millions of americans , whose lives we hold in our hands , by allowing federal funding to be used for this promising research . 
the authors of h.r. 810 have gone to great lengths to guarantee that safeguards are in place to ensure the ethical use of embryonic stem cells . 
embryos used for stem cell research under h.r. 810 , will come from donor participation in in vitro fertilization , ivf , so embryos will not be created or cloned for research . 
this legislation also directs the experts at the national institutes of health to define the boundaries of this research . 
nih has stated that they are prepared to institute these parameters . 
such restrictions will ensure that rogue scientists are not performing dangerous and unethical experiments . 
the united states has long been the leader of groundbreaking health research . 
today we have the opportunity to ensure that the rest of the world does not continue to take the lead in health care advances . 
i urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of h.r. 810 , not only because u.s. based researchers deserve to be at the forefront of the development of promising new treatments , but also for all of our constituents , friends , and family members who are counting on us to support the effort to find cures for so many different diseases and illnesses . 
