Posted January 10, 2025 by Tiffany Lee
The National Institutes of Health has updated its Public Access Policy, with the new guidelines set to take effect for manuscripts accepted on or after Dec. 31, 2025. Until then, the 2008 policy is still in effect.
The 2024 policy introduces several significant changes compared to the 2008 version:
Immediate public access
The 2008 policy permitted a 12-month embargo period before making NIH-funded research articles publicly accessible. The 2024 policy eliminates this embargo, requiring that final peer-reviewed articles be made publicly available in PubMed Central immediately upon publication.
Clarified definitions
The updated policy introduces specific definitions for terms such as “Article,” “Manuscript,” and “Final Published Article” to delineate the various stages of writing and publishing. This clarification aims to enhance understanding and compliance among researchers (NOT-OD-25-047).
Scope of applicability
While the 2008 policy applied to any peer-reviewed article resulting from direct NIH funding, the 2024 policy expands this scope to include all final, peer-reviewed articles accepted for publication that result from NIH funding, whether in whole or in part. This change ensures broader inclusion of NIH-supported research outputs (NOT-OD-25-047).
Policy duration
The 2024 policy maintains the stance that there is no end date for its applicability. This means that the policy applies to all relevant manuscripts, regardless of when the associated NIH award was active, ensuring ongoing access to NIH-funded research (NOT-OD-25-047).
These updates reflect NIH’s commitment to enhancing public access to research findings, promoting transparency and accelerating the dissemination of scientific knowledge.
For questions about compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy, contact Sue Gardner, scholarly communications librarian and University Libraries professor.
