You may have recently heard the NIH Director speak about the importance of academic freedom in scientific discovery. In short, NIH defines academic freedom as the ability to engage in open, rigorous discourse to stress test ideas, challenge the status quo, and shape the most impactful path forward.
Now, I might be biased – but I believe that nowhere is academic freedom more vital than in the policymaking process. For a policy to have its intended impact – with minimized unintended consequences – policymakers must rigorously debate the merits of the evidence, evolving societal and ethical views, the practicalities of implementation, etc. Public debate is the cornerstone of sound policy.
For these reasons, I’m extremely proud to say NIH continues to value public debate around our newest policy proposal regarding maximizing research funds by limiting allowable publication costs.
Let’s start with the basics: To get science into the hands of other scientists, practitioners, and the public, we rely on a system of dissemination – namely, peer-reviewed publication. Ensuring that published research is rigorous, reliable, and compliant with federal policy requirements comes at a cost. Historically, NIH has supported these costs as part of its mission to advance science.
On the flip side, we often hear a valid concern: the public pays for everything – from research infrastructure to the research project, to the data sharing, to the publication – and ultimately, for access to any resulting product. This raises a fundamental question:
What is a reasonable cost for publication?
It is increasingly clear that some current practices potentially divert resources, and the NIH budget is a zero-sum game. What is the appropriate tradeoff between a publication cost and seeding the next groundbreaking discovery or promising early-career investigator? In asking ourselves this question, our policy goals remain consistent:
- Incentivize rigorous, unbiased scientific review
- Maximize the impact of NIH research dollars to support transformative discoveries
To make a truly fair system, we need your help to figure this out. Share your thoughts, concerns, or ideas on how we can strike the right balance between dissemination, fiscal responsibility, and scientific integrity. Submit your comments here by September 15, 2025: https://osp.od.nih.gov/comment-form-maximizing-research-funds-by-limiting-allowable-publishing-costs/
