In Accountability in Research, Health Care Attorneys Discuss Disparate Data Retention Standards in Biomedical Research

In an Accountability in Research article, health care associate Carolyn Lye, health care counsel Minal Caron, and health care partner Mark Barnes discussed disparate data retention standards in biomedical research.

The article summarizes the divergent data retention standards set forth by federal agencies, grant programs, and research institutions, as well as other applicable requirements under law, contract, and policy. The authors also discuss the importance of data retention in the context of research professionalism, data sharing efforts, intellectual property issues, and research integrity challenges, and provide recommendations for both institutions and applicable federal agencies to streamline and clarify data retention standards.

The article was co-authored by professor Barbara Bierer of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital and attorney Lauren Walsh of Mass General Brigham.