ADA wants limits on public access to research

Feb 7, 2010

The ADA wants to maintain restrictions on how the public can access federally funded research, the organization told the federal government in a letter this month, according to the ADA Web site. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) is considering ways to increase free public access to federally funded research reported in scholarly publications such as the Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA).

The ADA wants to limit access to final published versions of research and make them available for only 12 months. It also wants to protect intellectual property rights, including the digital image of the final article.

"The ADA supports the goal of providing timely health information to the public, particularly when it comes to taxpayer-supported research," the organization stated in a January 21, 2010, letter to the OSTP. "However, efforts to hasten such access should not jeopardize the understandability and trustworthiness of the information. It should also preserve the public's trust in journal publishers as credible, reliable filters of scientific information."

Limiting public access to final versions would prevent distribution of prepublication versions undergoing review and "preserve the integrity of federally supported research," the ADA stated. Under ADA policy, JADA articles are freely available to the public 12 months after publication.

"We strongly encourage you to incorporate the principles described into any public access policies you may develop," stated the ADA letter, which was signed by President Ronald Tankersley, D.D.S., and Executive Director Kathleen O'Loughlin, D.M.D., M.P.H. "Doing so would expedite public access to publications resulting from federally supported research. It would also maintain the public's trust in journal publishers as credible, reliable filters of scientific information."