In the News: NIH Approves New Stem Cell Lines for Research

Launching a dramatic expansion of government support for one of the most promising but most contentious fields of biomedical research, the National Institutes of Health on Wednesday [last week] authorized the first 13 lines of cells under the administration's policy and was poised to approve 20 more Friday...

The NIH has already authorized 31 grants worth about $21 million for research on human embryonic stem cells, money that was contingent on new lines passing government muster. The grants are for a variety of research, including work aimed at developing cells that could be used to treat diseases of the heart and nervous system.

This is an excerpt from a December 3 story in the Washington Post. Read the full story here.

Give Thanks for MS Research Funding

For the past several years, the National Institutes of Health investment in MS-related research has been declining. You've contacted your legislators many times to ask for increased multiple sclerosis research funding through the NIH.

Now you can say thank you.

Finally, the research community is being reinvigorated through significant money allocated to the NIH from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Send a quick email to the White House. Thank President Obama for his commitment to science and research. Urge him to continue to make research a priority for FY 2011. It is important for the NIH and for multiple sclerosis research to make this funding permanent. The President will determine what funding to recommend for the NIH before the end of this year. Send your message today.

Chat with White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett

You are invited to an online chat with White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett to discuss how health insurance reform will impact minority communities and all Americans.

3:30 p.m. EST, Monday, November 2

Click here to submit your questions today.

Join on Monday at WhiteHouse.gov or at Facebook.com/WhiteHouse.

In the News: Oregon Politician Lives with Multiple Sclerosis

Bill Bradbury isn't just running for Oregon governor. He's zipping — on a Segway.

Using the personal transporter is one way the Democratic politician deals with the effects of multiple sclerosis. He was diagnosed with the disease 30 years ago, but that hasn't stopped him from becoming one of the most exuberant and popular figures on Oregon's political scene.

Tall and lanky, he glides into campaign events on his electric standup vehicle, his booming laugh often heralding his arrival. The disease has affected his physical skills, he says, but not his mental abilities or his capacity to govern.

"I get energized by the challenge of this campaign," he says. "I really feel like the disability doesn't interfere with my ability to serve the people of this state."

The is an excerpt from an Associated Press article that ran in the New York Times on October 24. Read more here.

In the News: City Officials in Wheelchairs for a Day

As he approached the elevator doors in town hall, Edison Mayor Jun Choi swung his wheelchair around and backed his way in. From there, he pushed the metal wheels from the tax office to the clerk's desk, out the front door and over to the courtroom and police station.

Choi isn't disabled. Nor is Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan. But the two rolled around town hall in manual wheelchairs yesterday to see how well the building is adapted to the handicapped. Following them in a motorized chair was Jackie Jackson, a South Plainfield disability activist who organizes the accessibility tours in conjunction with the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

This is an excerpt from an October 15 article in the New Jersey Star-Ledger. Read the full story.