Originally formed to protect stem-cell research in Missouri, Missouri Cures has broadened its mission to protecting all medical research in the state, focusing on the treatment and restoration of health to ensure that all medical research legal at the federal level is also legal in Missouri.

The original 501(c)4 advocacy arm of the organization was founded in 2005 by the late James Stowers and former Washington University Chancellor Dr. William Danforth. Then known as The Missouri Coalition for Lifesaving Cures, the organization now called Missouri Cures began as a 2006 state constitutional amendment ballot initiative.

“The Stem Cell and Cures Initiative,” known as “Missouri Amendment 2,” was co-chaired by former US Sen. John Danforth and the late US Sen. Thomas Eagleton and was formed to protect stem-cell research and therapies in Missouri that were legal under federal law. Donn Rubin served as the campaign chairman and still serves as Chairman today.

In 2011, the 501(c)3 nonprofit Missouri Cures Education Foundation was founded. Its mission is to promote ongoing clinical and medical research, clinical studies, and thought leadership in the area of regenerative medicine. It sponsors events and provides educational forums; enables thought leadership by participating in, or speaking at, medical and biotech industry events; issues regular communications through emails and social media posts; and collaborates with other like-minded advocacy groups. In 2013, the Women in Science & Entrepreneurship events were created and are now held in six cities in Missouri to give women in the field a chance to learn and network.

Key values of Missouri Cures

• Advocacy: advocating for policy issues that protect and promote medical
  research and ensuring that researchers can do their jobs; analyzing,
  understanding, and speaking on how proposed legislation affects
  organizations as well as existing law.
• Economic growth and development: drive economic development
  activity through research-driven startups.
• Education about legislative issues, ongoing research, and clinical trials,
  and connecting patients with relevant resources; raise public awareness
  of the depth and breadth of medical research taking place in Missouri.
• l Independence and inclusivity in working with volunteers, donors,
  patients, organizations and research facilities involved with and touched
  by regenerative disease conditions, treatments, and research.
• Collaboration with organizations and individuals around the state to help
  spread the word and advocate for initiatives and programs that educate
  and inform as well as protect continuing medical research in Missouri.
• l Progressive and forward-thinking: Missouri Cures’ mission is to support
  cutting-edge research in the areas of regenerative medicine to find
  therapies and cures for debilitating disease—finding tomorrow’s cures
  today.
• Innovative: Missouri Cures is a unique organization that supports
  ALL medical research, supporting researchers and doctors, as well as
  educating legislators in the progress being made in the quest to find new
  therapies and cures by the fostering of groundbreaking research and
  therapeutic treatments for debilitating diseases.