Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy: How a Government for the People, Failed the People

Authors

Jeffery Mark Sauer

Abstract

Despite having the potential to significantly reduce the passage of many lethal diseases and devastating birth defects, mitochondrial replacement therapy—a controversial medical procedure in which mitochondrial RNA from a healthy female replaces the mitochondrial RNA from the intended mother in vitro—will have no place in the United States anytime soon. Under the guise of purported safety concerns and ethical dilemmas, the Republican Congress used its “power of the purse” to halt any and all research furthering mitochondrial replacement therapy, notwithstanding the fact that many leaders in the medical community have advocated for further research. Several developed countries have already implemented limited applications of the procedure. However, as long as Congress continues to abuse its constitutional appropriations power in a manner inconsistent with the original intent of the framers, policies that can greatly benefit society as a whole will be sacrificed in the name of partisanship and narrow-mindedness.

Recommended Citation

Jeffery Mark Sauer, Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy: How a Government for the People, Failed the People, 73 U. Mia. L. Rev. 300 (2018)
Available at: https://repository.law.miami.edu/umlr/vol73/iss1/8