In 2017, Texas passed House Bill 810, also known as “Charlie’s Law,” which expanded patient access to experimental stem cell interventions. This legislation required that clinics conducting stem cell work report annually on patients and procedures, but what these reports would look like and how they would be used were left ambiguous.

At this event, THI President Emeritus James T. Willerson, MD, Dr. Barry R. Davis, MD, PhD, Guy S. Parcel Chair in Public Health, Professor of Biostatistics and Director of the Coordinating Center for Clinical Trials, The University of Texas School of Public Health and Texas Medical Board morning President Sherif Zaafran, MD, FASA, discussed the value of a statewide registry to document, catalog and analyze stem cell interventions, which would have profound significance for promoting Texas as a worldwide center of stem cell and regenerative medicine innovation.

Dr. Davis highlighted other successful registries that can be used as models and their influence on public health. The panelist also discussed the infrastructure and resources required to create the registry.

This event was part of a series launched in 2016 dedicated to educating the public on the important intersection of science, medicine and policy in stem cell research at the state and national levels. The series is a collaboration between the Baker Institute Center for Health and Biosciences and the Texas Heart Institute, partially funded by a grant from the George and Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation.

Visit @BakerCHB on Twitter to learn more about the event and join the conversation online with #BakerStemCell.

Event Photos