Effective May 10, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is implementing a provision in the 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 117-103) that mandates NIH-funded institutions to report to the agency when principal investigators or other key personnel on an NIH grant are removed from their positions due to concerns about harassment, bullying, retaliation, or hostile working conditions. This provision, which was signed into law on March 15, provided NIH the authority to require that institutions report when personnel changes to an NIH grant are related to harassment.
As detailed in a May 10 statement by NIH Acting Director Lawrence Tabak, PhD, this provision builds on the NIH’s ongoing efforts to support harassment-free work environments, encouraged by a 2018 National Academies report that showed sexual harassment is a significant barrier to women entering science, engineering, and medicine careers. Effective July 8, NIH is requiring that NIH-funded institutions notify within 30 days of the removal of personnel or disciplinary action via a webform. More information on the new requirement is available on the NIH Grants and Funding page.