Congressional Quarterly senior health reporter Mary Agnes Carey in this week's "Health on the Hill from kaisernetwork.org and CQ" examines Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's (R-Tenn.) shift in his stance on human embryonic stem cell research, Supreme Court nominee John Roberts' record on abortion and Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Patty Murray's (D-Wash.) previous objections to FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford's confirmation. Before Congress' August recess, Frist -- who previously had backed President Bush's limitations on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research -- broke with the Republican Party by announcing his support for a measure (HR 810/S 471) that would expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. According to Carey, Frist's move "sets the stage for a likely showdown" between Frist and other supporters of the measure and Bush and embryonic stem cell research opponents. Carey also discusses how abortion advocates are hopeful that Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) will "pin down" Judge John Roberts' views on abortion rights during his Senate confirmation hearings, which are set to begin next month. Feinstein said she met with Roberts privately last month to let him know how important Roe v. Wade -- the 1973 Supreme Court decision that struck down state abortion bans -- is to her, but she will not disclose what he said during the meeting. Finally, Carey addresses last month's Senate confirmation of FDA Commissioner Lester Crawford after Rodham Clinton and Murray agreed to lift the hold they had placed on his nomination because of the agency's delay in making a decision on Barr Laboratories' application for nonprescription sales of its emergency contraceptive Plan B. The senators agreed to lift their holds after HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said that FDA will make a decision on Barr's application by Sept. 1 (Carey, "Health on the Hill from kaisernetwork.org and CQ," 8/8).

The complete audio version of "Health on the Hill," transcript and resources for further research are available online.