PHS ANNOUNCES DRAFT POLICY ON INSTRUCTION IN THE RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH 
FOR PUBLIC COMMENT

Release Date:  July 17, 2000

NOTICE:  OD-00-045

Department of Health and Human Services

The Office of Research Integrity and the Public Health Service research 
agencies are developing a new policy on instruction in the responsible 
conduct of research for institutions receiving PHS funds for research or 
research training. This policy will apply to all persons conducting research 
with PHS support. 

On October 22, 1999, HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala announced a number of 
important changes in policy to improve the Department’s research integrity 
efforts including a statement that  through ORI, the Department will require 
research institutions to provide training in the responsible conduct of 
research to all staff engaged in research or research training with PHS 
funds.  This decision was based on the Department’s commitment to ensure that 
all PHS supported researchers receive basic instruction in the key elements 
of responsible research and are familiar with basic regulatory requirements. 
The decision was also supported by prior recommendations of the Commission on 
Research Integrity which stated, in part, that HHS  require that each 
institution applying for or receiving a grant, contract, or cooperative 
agreement under the Public Health Service Act for research or research 
training add to its existing misconduct-in-science assurance a third 
declaration, one certifying that the institution has an educational program 
on the responsible conduct of research. Through this mechanism, the current 
NIH research integrity education requirement, now limited to recipients of 
institutional training grants at NIH-funded institutions, would be augmented 
by an assurance applied to all individuals supported by PHS research funds.  
Commission Report,  Integrity and Misconduct in Research,  p.18 (HHS 1995). 


Institutions and individuals interested in commenting on the draft policy may 
access it on the ORI website at <http://ori.dhhs.gov> by clicking on  What’s 
New  or obtain it from ORI at the address below.  All comments must be 
received by ORI at 5515 Security Lane, Suite 700, Rockville, MD, 20852, or by 
E-mail to [email protected], no later than August 21, 2000.  Following 
consideration of public comments and appropriate revisions, it is expected 
that the new policy will be announced by October 1, 2000.

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