 February 24, 1999
National Notes
___ Fifteen have died under suicide law. Fifteen terminally ill people in Oregon died in 1998 as a result of using the nation's only assisted-suicide law in the first year since it took effect. State health officials said those who used the law were most often patients who had a strong desire to control how they died. The first report on the Death with Dignity Act states that 23 people received prescriptions for lethal drugs in 1998. Six died from their illnesses before using the drugs, and two were still alive as of Jan. 1. Of the 15 who died, 13 had cancer, and two suffered from heart or lung disease.
___ Congressmen oppose stem-cell research. Seventy members of Congress have written Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala urging a halt to expected federal funding of controversial human stem-cell research. Stem cells are newly isolated human cells that can grow into bodily organs. Supporters say research using the cells could lead to cures for Alzheimer's, cancer, Parkinson's and heart disease. But the cells are derived from sources such as aborted fetuses and frozen embryos, leading opponents to conclude the research would violate a federal ban against government support for research in which human embryos are destroyed.
___Benefit of abstinence programs cited in study. Programs promoting teen sexual abstinence may be a significant factor in the decline in adolescent pregnancy, abortion and birth rates, a study has found. "The decline in the overall birthrates among adolescent females during the 1990s is due primarily to teens that have never had sex or are not currently having sex," said a team of 11 doctors who presented their findings to the Consortium of State Physicians Resource Councils. "Abstinence-only programs may be playing an increasing role in bringing about reduced teen sexual activity." They cited the use of pledge cards in the True Love Waits campaign as an example of abstinence programs that have been popular in some church youth groups. "Nearly 16 percent of all female teens and 10 percent of all male teens have signed pledge cards ... through True Love Waits and similar programs," the report stated.
___ Robertson back at helm of Christian Coalition. Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson will again become the organization's president, replacing the departed Donald Hodel. Robertson served as the organization's president until 1997, when Hodel assumed the post. Since then, Robertson had been a senior adviser to the Chesapeake, Va.-based conservative lobbying group. Randy Tate, a former Republican congressman from Washington state, remains the organization's executive director responsible for its day-to-day operations.
___ Teletubby gossip sparks Uh-ohs. "If you love a Teletubby, tell him the truth," the ads warn. "Uh-oh," as they say in Teletubbyland. The ads are a not-too-subtle parody of a recent advertising campaign by Christian conservatives to persuade gays and lesbians to abandon the homosexual lifestyle. The parodies ran last week in gay newspapers in Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans. The commotion began with Jerry Falwell's warning that he believes the purple Tinky Winky (whom he says carries a purse and displays a triangle on his head symbolizing support for gay rights) is gay.
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