The California stem cell agency yesterday made public significant
background information concerning its board meeting one week from today,
including an application for a $20 million clinical trial award.
Release of the information is a step forward in openness and
transparency for the agency, which has slipped in that area recently. (See here and here.)
The $20 million award is the only application up for
approval next Thursday, just four business days away. The California Stem Cell
Report will have more on the proposal later today.
Items with fresh, additional information include new conflict of interest standards for the agency’s blue-ribbon grant reviewers, changes in the scheduling of upcoming rounds for basic and translational research and
changes in loan award policies.
Still missing is information involving the agency’s plans to
correct deficiencies identified in a $230,000 performance audit and the agency’s
ongoing revision of its plans for spending its last $1 billion.
Next Thursday’s meeting will be a teleconference session
with 17 remote locations, including Atlanta, where the public can participate
and listen in. All are places from which board members log in for the meeting. The locations include
San Francisco (3 locations), Fresno, Davis, Los Angeles(3 locations), Napa, Stanford,
Sacramento, Davis, Fresno, Berkeley, Los Gatos, Irvine and La Jolla (2
locations). Specific addresses can be found on the agenda.
The meeting will also be audiocast on the Internet, but no
public participation is available by that means.
Comments to the board can be sent in advance of the meeting
to mbonneville@cirm.ca.gov.
No comments:
Post a Comment