This guidance summarizes the 2025 NIH Public Access Policy updates and outlines Duke CTSI and CTSA requirements for requesting resources, ensuring manuscript compliance, and applying proper citation and acknowledgment language.
2025 NIH Public Access Policy Updates
The NIH Public Access Policy was updated effective July 1, 2025, aligning with the 2022 Office of Science and Technology Policy Memorandum. Prior to this update, NIH-funded research was required to be available to the public at some point, generally aligned with the journal’s embargo period. This updated policy requires public access immediately.
Key Enhancements
| Immediate Submission | No Embargo Period | Impact on Funding | No Cost to Authors | Mandatory Acknowledgment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Author-accepted manuscripts must be submitted to PubMed Central (PMC) upon acceptance. |
Full text must be publicly available in PMC immediately upon publication. | Non-compliance may affect current and future NIH funding. | Submission to PMC is free. | Manuscripts must include an NIH funding statement. |
Why is this a challenge? For many journals, publication with open access has a fee that the investigator must pay. So, while submission to PMC is free, open access for many journals is not. While some journals have made changes to address this for NIH-funded research, many have not. Thus, researchers must now ensure they are submitting NIH-funded research to journals aligned with this new Public Access Policy.
Additional guidance: https://guides.mclibrary.duke.edu/nihpapcompliance/2025guidance
NIH Public Access Response Team: nihpublicaccesscompliance@dm.duke.edu
Duke CTSA Internal Compliance Process
The Duke CTSI partners with the School of Medicine Libraries to ensure all publications that cite the CTSA are compliant with NIH policies. Authors with noncompliant manuscripts will be contacted by CTSI Program Coordinator, Jeremy O’Quinn. All publications citing CTSA grants must be compliant at the time of RPPR submission.
Key Contacts
Jeremy O’Quinn
CTSI Program Coordinator
Cinthia Sanchez, PhD
CTSA Hub Administrator
Requesting CTSI Resources & Services and Determining Proper Citation
Use the Duke CTSI Citation Pathway (below) to determine when and how to apply the correct acknowledgment language. The pathway also outlines, how to submit abstracts for review, and how to determine whether CTSI (institutional) or CTSA (NIH‑funded) support applies. Please send the abstract to the following mailbox CTSI-Citations@duke.edu for approval.
Duke CTSI Citation Pathway
(CTSI Institutionally- Funded & CTSA NIH-Funded Projects)
Step 1: Are Duke CTSI Institutionally or CTSA NIH funded resources or services being used? (e.g., biostatistics support, consultations, educational programs, pilot project, scholar/trainee effort or other CTSI faculty/staff support)
- No → No action needed
- Yes → Go to Step 2
Step 2: Send abstract to CTSI Publications Mailbox (CTSICitations@duke.edu) for approval.
Step 3: Was the abstract approved?
- No → Proceed without acknowledgment
- Yes → Cite Duke CTSI or CTSA using recommended acknowledgment language in the citation guidelines.
- Submit to PubMed Central
- Follow NIH Public Access Policy
Citation Guidance
Citing the Duke CTSI (Institutional Support)
Use the following citation when your project received institutional support from the Duke CTSI. This includes consultation, educational training programs, or other assistance provided by CTSI faculty or staff using institutional funds (e.g., coordination, facilitation, or meeting planning).
Recommended Language
- “The project described herein was supported by the Duke Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Duke CTSI.”
Citing the Duke CTSA (NIH‑Funded Support)
The Duke Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) program is funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) at the NIH (Grant Numbers 1UM1TR005436 or 1K12TR005435 as appropriate).
- All publications, press releases, posters, presentations, educational materials, pilot project, scholar/trainee effort, or other documents that result from the direct utilization of CTSA resources must credit the Duke CTSA grant.
- Publications must also comply with the NIH Public Access Policy (submission to PubMed Central).
Recommended Language
- “The project described was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), National Institutes of Health, through Grant Award Number 1UM1TR005436 or 1K12TR005435. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.”
Examples:
Duke CTSA Researchers & Pilot Grant Awardees
“The project described was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), National Institutes of Health, through Grant Award Number 1UM1TR005436. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.”
K12 Scholars
“The project described was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health, through Grant 1K12TR005435. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.”
Citing Both CTSI and CTSA Support
Use this when your project received both institutional CTSI support and CTSA grant funding.
Recommended Language
- “This project was supported in part by the Duke Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), National Institutes of Health, through Grant 1UM1TR005436 or 1K12TR005435, as appropriate. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH nor Duke CTSI.”