NIH Compliance Report FAQ

Why am I on this report?

Your NIH award was associated with a paper that does not currently comply with the NIH’s public access to publications requirement. All peer-reviewed papers derived from NIH funding must be made publicly accessible by being deposited into PubMed Central, the NIH public access repository, within 12 months of publication.

This association typically occurs on Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPR) or though inclusion and linking on an NCBI My Bibliography.

Where does this information come from?

The NIH provides institutions like the University of Wisconsin-Madison access to the Public Access Compliance Monitor, an online tool that allows funded papers to be checked for compliance. All of the information is mined from NIH databases.

The paper associated with my award was published several years ago. Am I still responsible for ensuring it is submitted to PubMed Central?

All peer-reviewed papers accepted for publication on or after April 7, 2008, must be made publicly accessible. There is no statute of limitation on this requirement.

I am not an author of the paper. Why am I listed on the report?

Regardless of whether you actively participated in the development of a paper, if your award directlysupported the research or authors of the paper, you are ultimately responsible for ensuring compliance. For example, T32 (training grant) awardees are responsible for ensuring that their trainees’ peer-reviewed papers are made publicly accessible.

The paper is not peer-reviewed, it is not funded by my NIH award, or is a book chapter. How can I remove it from this list?

Often, the public access status of a paper may be changed in a principal investigator’s NCBI My Bibliography. If that does not work, PI’s may contact the NIH Help Deskor the UW-Madison Public Access Service for additional assistance.

What happens if the paper is not brought into compliance?

Failure to comply with the NIH’s public access to publication requirement may result in current or future NIH funding being frozen until all papers are brought in compliance.

Where can I get more information on the NIH’s public access requirement or assistance bringing a paper into compliance.

Contact the UW-Madison Public Access Service at (608) 262-6594 or publicaccess@wisc.edu.