As scientists and Nobel laureates, we are writing today to express our strong support for the House Appropriations Committee's recent direction to NIH
to develop an open, taxpayer access policy requiring that a complete
electronic text of any manuscript reporting work supported by NIH
grants or contracts be supplied to the National Library of Medicine's
PubMed Central. We believe the time is now for all Members of Congress
to support this enlightened policy.
Science is the measure of the human race's progress. As
scientists and taxpayers too, we therefore object to barriers that
hinder, delay or block the spread of scientific knowledge supported by
federal tax dollars including our own works....
There's no question, open access truly expands shared knowledge
across scientific fields -- it is the best path for accelerating
multi-disciplinary breakthroughs in research....There is widespread
acknowledgement that the current model for scientific publishing is
failing us....The trend towards open access is gaining momentum....Free
access to taxpayer funded research globally may soon be within grasp,
and make possible the freer flow of medical knowledge that strengthens
our capacity to find cures and to improve lives.
As the undersigned Nobel Laureates, we are committed to open
access. We ask Congress and NIH to ensure that all taxpayers get their
money's worth. Our investment in scientific research is not well served
by a process that limits taxpayer access instead of expanding it. We
specifically ask you to support the House Appropriations Committee language as well as NIH leadership in adopting this long overdue reform.
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