The World Health Organization (WHO) has drawn up a set of bioethics principles which may lead to the first comprehensive international guidelines on the ethical issues arising from developments in biology and medicine.
The draft guidelines, which advise on issues such as gene patenting and the use of genetic information by insurance companies, will be presented to the general assembly of WHO in May. Commentators are pointing out that this move is intended to give greater prominence to the social impact of developments in genetics.
WHO's decision to draw up these guidelines was prompted by the political controversy generated by the birth of Dolly the sheep in 1997. The WHO's knee-jerk response to the controversy, which exposed the agency's unpreparedness on bioethical issues, led to calls from member states and the general assembly for the organisation to take a more active role.
The draft guidelines, which were approved by the WHO executive board in January, are likely to be put forward as an international declaration. Although not legally binding, it would represent a strong political consensus among the organisation's member states on fundamental principles in bioethics.
Sources and References
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WHO steps closer to its responsibilities
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WHO's bioethics code likely to stir debate
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