NIH - Public Access Policy
Effective: April 7, 2008
On January 11, 2008, NIH published the “Revised Policy on Enhancing Public Access to Archived Publications Resulting from NIH-Funded Research” making it a requirement for all NIH supported researchers and institutions to comply with the Public Access Policy.
This revision was issued in response to Congress “Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008” (Public Law 110-161, 121 Stat. 1844) stating:
“The Director of the National Institutes of Health shall require that all investigators funded by the NIH submit or have submitted for them to the National Library of Medicine’s PubMed Central an electronic version of their final, peer-reviewed manuscripts upon acceptance for publication, to be made publicly available no later than 12 months after the official date of publication: Provided, That the NIH shall implement the public access policy in a manner consistent with copyright law.”
- From volunteer public access policy to mandatory public access
- From individual assurance to Institutional assurance that Investigators will comply with the law
The following dates are important:
- Starting April 7, 2008: “All articles arising from NIH funds must be submitted to PubMed Central upon acceptance for publication.”
- Starting May 25, 2008: “NIH applications, proposals, and progress reports must include the PubMed Central reference number when citing an article that falls under the policy and is authored or coauthored by the investigator, or arose from the investigator’s NIH award. This policy includes applications submitted to the NIH for the May 25, 2008 due date and subsequent due dates.”
Specifics from NIH Website
- The NIH Public Access Policy applies to all peer-reviewed articles that arise, in whole or in part, from direct costs 1 funded by NIH, or from NIH staff, that are accepted for publication on or after April 7, 2008.
- Institutions and investigators are responsible for ensuring that any publishing or copyright agreements concerning submitted articles fully comply with this Policy.
- PubMed Central (PMC) is the NIH digital archive of full-text, peer-reviewed journal articles. Its content is publicly accessible and integrated with other databases (see http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/).
- The final, peer-reviewed manuscript includes all graphics and supplemental materials that are associated with the article.
- Beginning May 25, 2008, anyone submitting an application, proposal or progress report to the NIH must include the PMC or NIH Manuscript Submission reference number when citing applicable articles that arise from their NIH funded research. This policy includes applications submitted to the NIH for the May 25, 2008 due date and subsequent due dates.
Copyright Concerns
Make sure that any copyright transfer or other publication agreements allow the article to be submitted to NIH in accordance with the Policy.
The Dartmouth College Library is offering assistance with copyright language. They have developed the following templates for your use:
For additional information and assistance, please refer to the following link:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~library/schcomm/.
NIH Website Resources
NIH provides resources and guidance on a Public Access dedicated website, http://publicaccess.nih.gov/, that includes the list of publishers currently submitting articles to PubMed Central on behalf of the researchers.
