The embryonic consortium formed by the publishers is called "patientINFORM" and among the participants are commercial giants Elsevier, Springer and Wiley plus the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Diabetes Association, and others.
Rick Johnson, the Director of SPARC, and also a member of the Alliance for Taxpayer Access, said, "Every effort to make credible research available to the public is a step in the right direction. However, given the current climate of positive change, this one is too little too late. It emerges from the publishing interests, not the patients, and will add only a select portion of taxpayer-funded research for public consumption. It is ironic that this limited experiment has only now emerged after a majority of public interest and patient advocates already have weighed in to support the NIH enhanced public access program."
Johnson added, "We applaud all authentic efforts to make medical research universally and freely available. The movement toward open access deserves more allies and more leaders. However, the purpose, scope and timing of this development are all questionable at best."
Patient advocate Robert Reinhard, board member of the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, said, "This is a troubling proposal. It appears to discriminate among people with different illnesses without justification. It would create a group of those who are 'in' and those with other illnesses who are excluded. In addition, many patients are scientifically savvy. Although well prepared lay explanations are always welcome, the proposal fails to respect all patients' direct right to know
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9-Dec-2004