WASHINGTON, DC - In an effort to help thousands of patients suffering from diseases requiring bone marrow and cord blood transplants, President Obama signed the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act of 2015 into law.  This critical measure, which was co-authored by U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Jack Reed (D-RI), reauthorizes the National Marrow Donor Program and the National Cord Blood Inventory, renewing until 2020 these federal programs for using bone marrow and cord blood to treat diseases and conduct research.

“This bipartisan law builds upon the highly successful National Marrow Donor Program that has been a lifeline for thousands of transplant patients over the last several decades.  It helps bring hope and a second chance at life to thousands of patients in need this year,” said Senator Reed.  “Bone marrow and cord blood transplants continue to offer effective treatments for a number of diseases and disorders, and renewal of this bipartisan law marks a critical step forward in expanding access to lifesaving therapies to millions of patients with conditions that can be treated and even cured with bone marrow or cord blood.”

“Reauthorization of this significant, life-saving bill will advance the important work of the bone marrow and cord blood programs to promote new discoveries within the fields of cellular therapy and regenerative medicine,” said Senator Hatch. “Enacting this bill will also reaffirm the commitment that Congress made three decades ago to help patients with blood cancers and other life-threatening diseases by increasing access to life-saving transplants.”

Cord blood is the blood that remains in the placenta and in the attached umbilical cord after childbirth.  It is collected and used in research because it is rich in blood-forming stem cells, which can be used to treat a range of diseases.

The bill also reauthorizes the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program, which houses the National Registry, known as “Be the Match;” the Office of Patient Advocacy; and the Stem Cell Therapeutic Outcomes Database. 

According to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), about 12,600 people annually depend on programs made available by this law to find an unrelated adult marrow donor or cord blood unit for treatment.

Today, Americans have access to more than 12 million adult volunteer donors and over 200,000 cord blood units through “Be The Match.”  Transplants involving these adult stem cells are often the only hope for patients battling blood cancers like leukemia and can cure sickle cell anemia and other bone marrow disorders and conditions.  Since the inception of the registry, the program has successfully facilitated 68,000 transplants.

In Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Blood Center holds bone marrow drives on a weekly basis.  Since 1994, Roger Williams Medical Center has been home to Rhode Island's only Blood and Marrow Transplantation Program. In this comprehensive transplant center, autologous, allogeneic (related and unrelated) and cord blood transplantation services are offered.

The Hatch-Reed law reauthorizes funding from fiscal year 2016 through fiscal year 2020, with $23 million annually for the National Cord Blood Inventory and $30 million a year for the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation program.

In the U.S. House of Representatives the bill was cosponsored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA).  It passed Congress with bipartisan support on December 16 and was signed by President Obama on December 18.

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