NIH recently announced a new timeframe for use of the PubMed Central reference number (PMCID) as documentation of compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy when citing an applicable paper in an application, proposal or progress report.

A PMCID is now required for demonstration of compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy for applicable papers that have been in publication more than three months before an application, proposal or progress report is due. If an applicable paper is in press or has been in publication for less than three months, the NIH Manuscript Submission system reference number (NIHMS ID) or “PMC Journal – In Process” may be used as documentation of compliance depending on the submission method used by the authors for an applicable paper.

Resources:

• PMID: PMCID Converter Tool

The converter tool displays the NIHMS ID for a work submitted via Methods C and D using the PMID (if available). The PMID is a number assigned to citations added to MEDLINE/PubMed.

• Submission Method Chart

This handy chart from NIH outlines the four methods of submission and includes information on who is responsible for the approval tasks and how to demonstrate compliance.

• Clarification on the Use of an NIHMSID to Indicate Compliance with the NIH Public Access Policy (NOT-OD-09-136)