Stem cell research has health and economic benefits

Too many lives have been lost, too many Californians are out of work, and our state budget is beyond strained. The toll of COVID-19 is emblematic of the cost and devastation associated with chronic disease — as it is the leading cause of death and leading driver of health care spending and bankruptcies in California.

This November, Californians will have an opportunity to vote on Proposition 14, which will advance stem cell research to help reduce the impacts of chronic diseases and conditions including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, COVID-19 and more.

Proposition 14 will continue what Californians started in 2004 when we passed Proposition 71, creating the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, a statewide stem cell research and therapy funding institute located here in Oakland.

Since then, California has made great progress on advancing research and treatments for more than 75 chronic diseases and conditions that affect millions of Californians every day. On average, it takes 12-15 years for new discoveries to progress from the lab through clinical trials — even then, a small fraction will gain Food and Drug Administration approval. CIRM has defied those odds. The average CIRM grant is less than seven years old, yet CIRM funding has led to more than 90 clinical trials and 2 FDA-approved lifesaving treatments for previously fatal forms of cancer.

While still in early stages, examples of other remarkable clinical trial results include cancer patients who had exhausted all other therapies but are now in remission, Type 1 diabetics have begun producing insulin, quadriplegics are regaining upper body function, and blind patients are regaining their sight.

Many of these trials are on track to result in additional FDA-approved treatments over the next few years, and CIRM’s nearly 3,000 published medical discoveries have created the basis for more to come. But, if California voters do not pass Proposition 14, many treatments and cures may end here — and we will miss an opportunity to gain early intervention therapies and stimulate our state’s struggling economy.

The rate of chronic disease increases annually, as does the cost of health care, which consumes nearly 30% of our state budget — 15 years ago, it only accounted for 15%. If this trend continues, in 15 years from now, California will not be able to afford investments in environmental protection, education or affordable housing. The financial burden chronic diseases and conditions place on our families, small businesses and individual incomes is growing at the same devastating rate.

By reducing the cost through early intervention therapies for just six of eight major chronic diseases or injuries by 1%-2%, we can save our families and state economy billions and pay for this initiative twice over.

Proposition 14 also will provide an economic and jobs stimulus when California needs it most. Based on recent studies demonstrating the economic benefits of CIRM, Proposition 14 would generate an estimated $20 billion in increased economic activity in California, $1.2 billion in additional state and local tax revenues, and more than 100,000 jobs at every level. Proposition 14 will not cost the state anything until 2026 and will provide economic benefits that outweigh the cost of the bonds until 2030.

Proposition 14 is supported by a growing coalition of more than 80 patient advocate organizations, hundreds of leading scientists and physicians, Nobel Prize winners, senior elected officials, the California Democratic Party and University of California.

Amid a global pandemic, we are constantly reminded that chronic disease is devastating and expensive, and we cannot take the health of our loved ones for granted. Proposition 14 is an opportunity that Californians cannot afford to pass up.