Science | embryonic stem cells Court Overturns Stem Cell Ban Federal funding can now be used for human embryonic cell research By Kevin Spak Posted Apr 29, 2011 12:06 PM CDT Copied A researcher pulls a frozen vial of human embryonic stem cells at the University of Michigan Center for Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Laboratory in this Oct. 22, 2008 file photo. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File) A federal appeals court overturned the ban on federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research today in a 2-1 ruling. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that such funding did not violate a 1996 law forbidding the use of federal money for research in which an embryo is destroyed, according to the Wall Street Journal. It’s a significant victory for President Obama, who made lifting George W. Bush’s restrictions on stem cell research funding one of his first acts as president. Read These Next Villanova's 'cruel hoax' a sign of a bigger problem. The Cracker Barrel logo brouhaha continues. Suspect arrested near Lionel Richie's home. An accused child rapist makes a drastic deal. Report an error