AT VOTE: Repeal "Stem Cells For Greater Health" [Complete] [Complete]

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Category: Repeal
Resolution: GA#49
Proposed by: Mousebumples

Repeal "Stem Cells For Greater Health":
Description: WA General Assembly Resolution #49: Stem Cells For Greater Health (Category: Social Justice; Strength: Significant) shall be struck out and rendered null and void.

Argument: THE WORLD ASSEMBLY:

DECLARES that repealing GAR#49, "Stem Cells for Greater Health," will not prohibit stem cell treatments in WA member nations.

RECOGNIZES the shortcomings of this Resolution, which include:

  1. The emphasis it places solely on stem-cell research:
    • A broader base of support for innovative medical research may improve the overall health and well-being of individuals within WA member nations.
    • Some nations may have access to technology that is more advanced than stem-cell research, which limits the usefulness of this resolution.
  2. The requirement with regards to the WHA funding and conducting research into stem cells alone prevents the WHA from focusing its resources towards the most promising and effective research. Instead, the WHA is required to use their resources on stem cell research even in the face of technological advances which may make stem cell research obsolete.
  3. The failure to ensure patient access and/or affordability of stem cell treatments resulting from the research and development covered in this resolution.
  4. The automatic inclusion of "All breakthroughs and developments ... into the Public Domain" through this resolution waives the intellectual property rights of those who make groundbreaking discoveries and may also discourage, or at least slow, the development of new innovations.

REGRETS the lack of sufficient and necessary regulations and/or guidelines when harvesting stem cells as the resolution only states that “Stem Cells must be harvested in the most humane and least destructive way possible.”
NOTES that:

  1. Consent - specifically uncoerced, informed consent - should be obtained from the donor or legal guardian of stem cell tissue, which is not required within this resolution.
  2. Stem cells should be harvested as effectively and efficiently as possible, while minimizing the risk to the donor.
  3. Demand for stem cells may have increased as a result of this resolution, which in turn may have resulted in unethical methods of stem cell harvesting and/or the exploitation of stem cell donors.

BELIEVES that individuals and/or private organizations that discover new stem cell innovations should retain their intellectual property rights for a period of time, in accordance with other international laws on the subject.
ACKNOWLEDGES that the World Assembly has previously affirmed the freedom of choice with regards to medical treatment and the right to medically essential drugs and treatment.

LAMENTS, however, the lack of sufficient protections for donors of stem cells within the text of this resolution.

UNDERSTANDS that this resolution is not only flawed and insufficient but may also serve as an impediment to the development of new innovations in medical technology and treatment.

ENCOURAGES the World Assembly to consider future legislation in order to promote the development of effective, cutting edge technologies in the fields of health and science.

REPEALS GAR#49, "Stem Cells For Greater Health."

Co-Authored by: Oliver the Mediocre
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Mousebumples:
Dear President Minister Kerenskij of The Respublika of Zemnaya Svoboda, WA Delegate for The North Pacific:

I write to you today to ask for your support on the first part of a fairly involved repeal and replace project that I have on-going - and one that I know we've discussed previously on your regional forums. Notably, I seek your approval on 2 repeals: One & Two

  1. Repeal “Organ and Blood Donations Act” (Please approve!)
    • WA nations are actually more restricted in the availability of organs and blood products than RL nations are today due to the wording of this resolution.
    • Individual patients, in coordination with their doctors, should be able to determine if “infected or diseased” organ or blood donations are something they are willing to accept. This decision should not be made by the WA as a whole, especially given the diversity of nations within the WA.
    • Further evidentiary links, should you be interested in reviewing such details, can be found here: viewtopic.php?p=10767642#p10767642
  2. Repeal “Stem Cells for Greater Health” (Please approve!)
    • The WA is mandated to fund stem cell research, even if more advanced technologies are developed.
    • Informed consent is not required, which may lead to the exploitation of stem cell donors.
  3. Pass three complementary replacements, which are all drafted and are currently up for debate on the NS forums, should you wish to contribute to the discussion. The proposal threads link to each other atop each, and the first can be found here: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=193536

In Real Life, I come from a “medical family.” (I’m a pharmacist, for one.) I know a lot about organ, blood, and stem cell donations and transplants, and I really think that the present resolutions are actively harmful to our national populations. I really feel that we need to start from scratch on both of these topics and pass smart, intelligent, and life-saving resolutions to replace them. Given the similarity of the topics, setting logical standards for organ, blood, and stem cell therapies (as a whole) makes sense.

Please give your approvals (here and here) both now and when they (hopefully) reach a vote. With your help, we can get these repealed and replaced with much more effective legislation.

Feel free to contact me with any questions. I’m fairly confident that a counter-campaign may be run, so if there’s concerns you may have, please feel free to telegram me. Thanks again for your consideration and support.

Yours sincerely,
Nikolas Eberhart
Ambassador from The Doctoral Monkey Feet of Mousebumples
WA Delegate for Monkey Island
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Just to recap two of the major points of the repeal:
  1. Consent of the donor or legal guardian of stem cell tissue is not required within this resolution. Since - arguably - donation of stem cell tissue is not a medical procedure (i.e. the donor is not being treated through the donation process), this could lead to exploitation of donors, the usage of embryonic stem cell tissue without the legal guardians' consent, etc. Quite the gaping loophole, if you ask me.
  2. The the resolution moves all stem cell discoveries into the public domain, which waives the intellectual property rights of those who make groundbreaking discoveries and may also discourage, or at least slow, the development of new innovations.
Also, on a "not listed in the repeal" note - my 3 replacements (which may grow to 4 in the next day or so ... ) are all based on getting BOTH of these resolutions repealed. I group organ, blood, and stem cell donations into a single group and use the same basic standards and guidelines for all of them.

If, for whatever reason, this repeal doesn't pass, I could make adjustments. But it would be easier not to, so ... please? Vote yes? Think of my poor, tired, proposal drafting fingers! ;)
 
Repeal "Stem Cells For Greater Health" was passed 8,079 votes to 1,466.

Voting on this resolution has ended.

Thanks to those nations who cast their votes. Your participation is a great help to the region.

This topic has been locked and sent to the Archives for safekeeping. If you would like this topic to be re-opened for further discussion, please contact the WA Delegate, a Global Moderator, or an Administrator for assistance. Thank you.
 
Voting on this resolution has ended.

Thanks to those nations who cast their votes. Your participation is a great help to the region.

This topic has been locked and sent to the Archives for safekeeping. If you would like this topic to be re-opened for further discussion, please contact the WA Delegate, a Global Moderator, or an Administrator for assistance. Thank you.
 
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