Guaranteed access to the ephemeral?

Echoing an earlier theme, California state senators Kuehl (D-Santa Monica) and George Runner of Antelope Valley have introduced a bill to maintain "the public’s trust [in CIRM] by identifying ways to increase public accountability and reduce conflicts of interest."

According to californiastemcellreport, Kuehl said the bill would:

"...require that grantees and licensees submit for CIRM's approval plans that will afford uninsured Californians access to drugs and cell therapies resulting from CIRM-funded research. The bill also ensures that publicly funded programs get the best prices for stem cell therapies and drugs by requiring grantees and licensees to sell them to publicly funded programs at a price that does not exceed one of the benchmark prices in Cal-Rx, the state’s prescription drug discount program."

IPBiz asks: what stem cell therapies resulting from CIRM-funded research? Fighting for uninsured Californians sounds good but is it merely fighting for access to that which is unlikely to exist. There is no therapeutic spaceship following directly behind the CIRM comet.

See Ad campaign for California's Proposition 71 as a bait and switch?