Bioethics Committee

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BIO Board Standing Committee on Bioethics

Mission

BIO is committed to the socially responsible use of biotechnology to save or improve lives, improve the quality and abundance of food, and protect our environment. BIO's board of directors has adopted a Statement of Ethical Principles, and we continue to refine a comprehensive vision of ways to ensure biotechnology is used for the betterment of humankind and not abused.

Committee Chairs

Joshua Boger, PhD, President & CEO, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

Russell M. Medford, Co-chair, MD, PhD, President, CEO & Scientific Co-Founder, AtheroGenics, Inc

Responsibilities

• The Bioethics Committee is responsible for actively encouraging discussion of ethical and social implications of scientific developments in biotechnology. Biotechnology can greatly improve the quality of life, but we recognize that this new technology should be approached with an appropriate mixture of enthusiasm, caution and humility.
• The committee works with state, federal and international legislative and regulatory bodies to shape policies that foster safe, effective and beneficial products.
• The committee works with BIO staff to brief members of Congress and officials of governmental agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, other branches of the Department of Health and Human Services and the President's Council on Bioethics on bioethical matters.
• Committee members may be asked to develop bioethics-related position papers, white papers and educational materials.
• Committee members may be asked to formulate comments and testimony on various bioethics-related guidelines and regulations.

Policy Approval Process

Substantive matters designed to become the official position of BIO are sent as recommendations of the Bioethics Committee to the board of directors for consideration.

Issues

Since its implementation, the Bioethics Committee has considered such issues as stem cell research, cloning, global health, use of genetic information, medical records confidentiality, protection of human subjects, access to health care, synthetic biology and conflicts of interest in medical research.

Eligibility for Participation

To become a member of the Bioethics Committee, one must be a member of BIO’s Board of Directors.

BIO Staff Contacts

Sara Radcliffe, Vice President, Health & Regulatory Affairs, sradcliffe@bio.org

Margarita Noriega, Coordinator, Bioethics & Intellectual Property Policy, mnoriega@bio.org