National Institutes of Health embargo-free open access policy to start six months earlier

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has brought forward the start of its open access policy by six months. The policy requires its grantees to make all their publications involving research partially or entirely funded by the agency immediately and freely accessible, along with the supporting data. Reaction to the announcement was mixed.

The new Public Access Policy, announced during the Biden administration, will now go into effect on 1 July, rather than the original target of the end of 2025. The fast-tracked rule applies to final, peer-reviewed articles accepted for publication in a journal on or after 1 July that are funded in part or fully by the NIH. Included is supplemental material that supports the publication, such as detailed methods and additional figures.