Your voice matters—take action now. The American Historical Association urges historians, researchers, educators, and advocates for preservation of and access to historical records to speak out in support of the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
The world’s largest biomedical library, the NLM maintains and makes available a vast collection and produces electronic information resources on a wide range of topics that are searched billions of times each year by millions of people around the globe. Its collection provides records used by historians, health professionals, and scholars in many fields and disciplines.
Recent reorganizations at the NLM, including the elimination of its History of Medicine Division, signal a departure from long-standing commitments to preserving the nation’s biomedical history and raise serious concerns about future access to these critical materials.
How you can help
The National Institute of Health is currently accepting public comments, via the NIH’s Request for Information (RFI), on its Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2027–31. This is an important opportunity for advocates to emphasize the importance of preserving and expanding access to the nation’s biomedical historical record.
- Submit a response to the NIH request for information by May 26, 2026 emphasizing these key points. (You may write your own or use or adapt the template provided at the end of this message):
- Priority 2 (Research Infrastructure): Urge the NIH to support the NLM’s collection as a vital resource for 21st-century research.
- Accelerated Digitization and Commensurate Preservation: Demand increased support for digitizing, preserving, and public programming around the NLM’s collection to ensure that it remains a part of the current research ecosystem and available for research of the future.
- Priority 3 (Public Trust): Remind the NIH that stewardship of medical history is critical for fostering transparency and public trust in science.
- Share this alert with your networks.
The AHA submitted a comment to the Federal Register responding to the RFI. Now we’re asking our members and affiliates to amplify this message. The NLM must remain a vital national resource that supports scholarship, education, and public knowledge. Make your voice heard to support the NLM’s legacy as the NIH plan for 2027-2031 is written.
Submit your comments here by the May 26, 2026 deadline: https://rfi.grants.nih.gov/?s=6998c3a23eb404a3e80e8212
Response Template
You may use this template as is or adapt it to reflect and draw on your own expertise and experience. https://rfi.grants.nih.gov/?s=6998c3a23eb404a3e80e8212
Subject: Response to RFI NOT-OD-26-047: NIH-Wide Strategic Plan for FY 2027–2031
I am writing as a [historian/researcher/educator] and member of the American Historical Association to provide feedback on the proposed framework for the NIH-Wide Strategic Plan.
Priority 2: Research Capacity (Goal 2) The National Library of Medicine’s (NLM) collection is essential research infrastructure. To support 21st-century scholarship, the NIH must prioritize robust collection stewardship in the form of accelerated collection digitization and commensurate preservation for the future. Making these historical records interoperable within the modern data science ecosystem is critical for advancing research. I am concerned that recent reorganizations, including the elimination of the NLM History of Medicine Division, signals a retreat from the NLM’s mandate to maintain, preserve, and make accessible the nation’s biomedical legacy.
Priority 3: Research Operations (Goal 2) Stewardship of medical history is fundamental to fostering transparency and public trust in science. The NLM must remain a vital national resource that supports public knowledge of both historical and contemporary health issues.
I urge the NIH to ensure the final Strategic Plan explicitly commits to preserving the NLM’s collection and accelerating the digital accessibility and preservation of its unique collections which reflect countless perspectives on the human condition across time and place.
Thank you.