[Pflienews] PharmFacts E-News Update: Caritas board members donate to abortoholic pols; MedImmune to make moral swine flu vax; more...

Wed Jun 17 14:40:29 MDT 2009

*PharmFacts E-News Update -- 17 Jun 2009 AD
*

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2009*__*

*_FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE_*

CONTACT: C. J. DOYLE

(781) 251-9739

*__*

*__* 

*_CARITAS CHRISTI BOARD INCLUDES MAJOR DONORS TO [ABORTOHOLIC] POLS_*

Since February, Caritas Christi Health Care --- the network of six 
Catholic hospitals affiliated with the Archdiocese of Boston --- has 
been enmeshed in a controversy over its decision to seek a state health 
insurance contract which requires abortion coverage.  Today, the 
Catholic Action League of Massachusetts revealed that five of the nine 
members of the Board of Governors of Caritas Christi have been major 
contributors to political figures who support legal abortion.

Using information gathered from the Federal Election Commission and the 
Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, the League 
disclosed the following:

    * Longtime Caritas Chairman James J. Karam contributed a total of
      more than $19,000 among the campaigns of President Barrack Obama;
      Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; US Senator John Kerry;
      Governor Deval Patrick; former Vice President Al Gore; Congressmen
      Barney Frank and Jim McGovern; former Lt. Governor Kerry
      Murphy-Healey; former Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly and State
      Senator Joan Menard.

    * Caritas board member Joseph H. Feitelberg, Area Chair for the
      Order of Malta, contributed a total of more than $8,000 among the
      campaigns of John Kerry; Deval Patrick; Kerry Murphy-Healey; and
      Congressmen Barney Frank, Patrick Kennedy and Jim McGovern.

    * Caritas board member Neil F. Finnegan contributed a total of more
      than $19,000 among the campaigns of Vice President Joe Biden; US
      Senators Christopher Dodd, Edward Kennedy and John Kerry;
      Congressmen Michael Capuano, Patrick Kennedy and Edward Markey;
      Boston Mayor Thomas Menino; and former State Treasurer Shannon
      O'Brien.

    * Caritas board member John H. Garvey, Dean of Boston College Law
      School, contributed $1,750 to John Kerry. 

    * Caritas board member Ruben J. King-Shaw Jr., contributed $10,000
      to Barrack Obama.

The Catholic Action League called the contributions "further compelling 
evidence of the indifference and infidelity to Catholic moral teaching 
which apparently permeates the leadership of Caritas Christi."

Catholic Action League Executive Director C. J. Doyle stated: "No one 
should be surprised that Caritas Christi is prepared to participate in a 
state contract requiring abortion coverage, when the leadership of the 
organization is willing to subsidize and perpetuate the careers of 
politicians who believe that abortion should be legal, publicly funded 
and unrestricted.  Cardinal O'Malley must use his veto power to insist 
that Caritas Christi withdraw from the Commonwealth Care contract, and 
withdraw from CeltiCare ."

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*June 17, 2009
Medimmune Will Use Moral Sources for Swine Flu Vaccine
*http://www.cogforlife.org/medimmuneswineflu.htm *    *

*/Update on our press release June 16, 2009: New Swine Flu Vaccine 
Produced in Moral Cell Culture /*

(Murfreesboro, TN) For nearly ten years watchdog organization Children 
of God for Life has alerted the public on existing and new vaccines and 
medical products under development using aborted fetal material, and to 
encourage the pharmaceutical industry to pursue moral avenues of research.

So when Medimmune signed license agreements with Crucell NV for aborted 
fetal PER C6 cell line in 2002 for flu vaccine production, Children of 
God for Life immediately alerted the public and wrote to then CEO John 
Mott, asking him to reconsider that decision. 

They never received a response. 

When Medimmune Public Relations representative Karen Lancaster contacted 
Children of God for Life on June 17, 2009, the news was a surprising 
relief. 

"Medimmune has shifted their focus from PER C6 for swine flu cell 
culture," announced Ms. Vinnedge. "Short term, they will continue using 
chick embryo as they do in all their regular flu vaccines.  Long term, 
they will use MDCK (Madin-Darby Canine Kidney) for cell culture production."

Ms Lancaster explained that they changed direction to MDCK a long and 
well-established cell line. When FDA meetings last fall focused 
specifically on the MDCK cell line as a viable cell substrate for flu 
vaccine production, it was an easy decision for Medimmune. 

To date, PER C6 has not been used successfully in any US vaccines.  In 
November 2007, Merck halted trials of its HIV vaccine using the cell line.

MDCK was originally used in the early 1970's for a moral version of the 
rubella vaccine.

It is uncertain whether Medimmune will use PER C6 in the future.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please take a minute to sign this petition keeping government control 
OUT of people's healthcare.

http://www.freeourhealthcarenow.com/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Conscience* protections sought for Nebraska psychologistsis 
<http://www.google.com/url?sa=X&q=http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php%3Fn%3D16301&ct=ga&cd=oL_Kd2UneG4&usg=AFQjCNE6Wu0LiYPK_sb7mocAixcyDYBybw>
Catholic News Agency - Denver,CO,USA
The *conscience clause* is already part of a proposed rule change for 
counselors. Its compromise language was worked out between the Nebraska 
Catholic *...*

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