Memorandum for the Secretary of Health and Human Services
Subject: Federal Funding of Fetal Tissue Transplantation Research
On March 22, 1988, the Assistant Secretary for Health of Health and Human Services ("HHS") imposed a temporary moratorium on Federal funding of research involving transplantation of fetal tissue from induced abortions. Contrary to the recommendations of a National Institutes of Health advisory panel, on November 2, 1989, the Secretary of Health and Human Services extended the moratorium indefinitely. This moratorium has significantly hampered the development of possible treatments for individuals afflicted with serious diseases and disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and leukemia. Accordingly, I hereby direct that you immediately lift the moratorium.
You are hereby authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON
William J. Clinton, Memorandum on Fetal Tissue Transplantation Research Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/220198