Public Town Hall Meeting on the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects Notice of Proposed Rulemaking; Notice

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP), is announcing a public Town Hall Meeting to respond to questions related to the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that HHS and fifteen other federal departments and agencies published in the Federal Register on September 8, 2015, (80 FR No. 173, pp. 53933-54061). The goal of the NPRM is to modernize, strengthen, and make more effective the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects that was promulgated as a Common Rule in 1991. The NPRM seeks comments on proposals to better protect human subjects involved in research, while facilitating valuable research and reducing burden, delay, and ambiguity for investigators. To be assured consideration, comments on the NPRM must be received no later than December 7, 2015. The purpose of the public Town Hall meeting is for OHRP, HHS agencies, and other Common Rule departments and agencies to provide responses to questions from the public about the NPRM during the open public comment period in order to clarify the NPRM proposals and better inform public comment on the NPRM. The public will be able to ask questions during the Town Hall Meeting, and to submit questions before the meeting. Details about how to submit questions before the Town Hall Meeting are provided below.