[Sighfis-l] Chronicle article: Federal review of the Common Rule (RE:Oral History research)

[Kathryn La Barre]

Of possible interest to the members of this group.

The following contains information about how to submit comments to the
federal government during the Common Rule review period. Oral
Historians may be especially interested in the outcome of this
process.

I'm forwarding brief excerpts from a recent article from the Chronicle
of Higher Education  (August 7, 2011 By Ryan Brown)

Historians Welcome Contemplated Changes in Human-Research Guidelines
http://chronicle.com/article/Historians-Welcome/128552/

"Reports on the recent federal government announcement that it is
contemplating substantially revising its 1991 statute on
human-research procedures, known as the Common Rule.
Text of announcement:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-07-26/html/2011-18792.htm

Among the changes the government is considering is one that would
exclude certain "minimal risk" studies from requiring approval by an
institutional review board. That category includes all "educational
tests, surveys, focus groups, interviews, and similar procedures"
conducted with consenting adults. This could possibly relax current
IRB oversight on Oral History projects.

 The Common Rule review begins with a 60-day public comment period,
during which individuals and professional organizations have the
opportunity to weigh in on the changes the federal government is
considering. The government will then take into account the feedback
and submit its proposed changes in the Common Rule to another round of
public comment before making the changes final. The bulk of the
proposed policy changes being reviewed during that time are related to
the hard sciences, the area in which most institutional-review-board
work is concentrated. But Mr. Schrag says he is glad to see issues
related to the social sciences considered as well."

You may submit comments, via mail or electronically, identified by:
docket ID number HHS-OPHS-2011-0005, until 5pm on 9-26-11>
More information about where and how to submit:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-07-26/html/2011-18792.htm

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry Menikoff, M.D., J.D., Office
for  Human Research Protections (OHRP), Department of Health and Human
Services, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 200, Rockville, MD 20852;
telephone: 240-453-6900 or 1-866-447-4777; facsimile: 301-402-2071; e-
mail: jerry.menikoff at hhs.gov.


-- 
Kathryn La Barre
Assistant Professor
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign