Last week, I spoke with Senator Len Fasano. Senator Fasano has introduced legislation to create a public cord blood bank. I believe such legislation is important to the health of Connecticut residents and vital to our economy as we look for new ways to fight and treat cancer.
Senator Fasano has been working on this legislation for some time. Over the summer Senator Fasano formed a task force to investigate how to create a public cord blood bank. Researchers from Yale and UConn were on the task force.
Presently, it’s not viable to operate a public bank in Connecticut. Cord blood from Connecticut would be stored out of state. Cells that were unable to be used would be provided to researchers in Connecticut. The bank would begin making money for the State within 5 years.
The benefits are significant considering most cord blood is presently discarded.
Senator Fasano will be holding a press conference on cord blood banking on March 1, 2011 in advance of a public hearing on the matter on March 2, 2011. Senator Fasano is optimistic that the legislation will pass because it enjoys bipartisan support.
I urge you to ask your legislator to support establishing a public cord blood bank. It just may save the life of someone you know.