Susan B. Anthony List, one of the nation's largest pro-life organizations, slammed the National Institute of Health for getting ahead of the Trump administration on fetal tissue research.
On Tuesday, a senior NIH official pledged to continue providing taxpayer-funded grants to nongovernmental labs and universities conducting research on fetal tissue, as initially reported by the Washington Post. The commitment, confirmed by multiple attendees, was made at an invitation-only conference with 40 scientists from across the country.
In response, Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of Susan B. Anthony List, accused the NIH of having "jumped ahead of the administration" and reaching a conclusion that was "out of step with the president's pro-life agenda."
"Reports that NIH officials insist the agency will continue taxpayer funding for unethical fetal tissue research are deeply disturbing to the millions of pro-life Americans who embrace the sanctity of every human life and who elected President Trump," Dannenfelser said in a statement obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
The NIH official's pledge was made even as the federal government is deliberating whether or not it will continue funding fetal tissue research.
In September, the White House ordered scientists at NIH to stop acquiring new fetal tissue for taxpayer-funded research experiments. The freeze was accompanied by an announcement that the Department of Health and Human Services was launching an audit into how federal researchers were procuring fetal tissue.
Around the same time, the Food and Drug Administration terminated its longstanding contract with Advanced Bioscience Resources (ABR) to supply body parts from aborted babies for research experiments. ABR, which had long partnered with the federal government, first came under scrutiny in 2015 when the Center for Medical Progress released videos of company executives discussing the sale of aborted baby parts for profit. The company is currently being investigated by the Department of Justice.
It is unclear if the NIH executive's promise constitutes an official policy change. Neither the NIH nor the HHS returned requests for comment on this story.
In her statement, Dannenfelser stated that the NIH official's promise, if implemented, would be a rebuke of the pro-life voters that have supported the president and his agenda.
"If these statements are allowed to stand, and policy continues unchanged, it would be the first time the Trump administration has broken with the pro-life movement," she said. "Pro-life voters do not want to foot the bill for any research that involves harvesting the body parts of unborn children from induced abortion. This includes research happening directly at NIH or in taxpayer-funded laboratories at universities and hospitals."
"There is absolutely no moral or ethical justification for treating unborn children and their organs like commodities," she added. "We urge President Trump to direct his agencies to put policies in place that truly reflect the values of pro-life Americans."