Council Initiated Discussion - Eric Green

ERIC GREEN: So we are at the end of the programmed items for open session, which now I guess
I'll turn it悠 guess I lead a discussion, "Council Initiated Discussion." Are there
any things that Council would like to talk about in the open session before we deal with
some other things and eventually go into closed session葉hat we haven't covered or new business
items or anything?
PARTICIPANT: This is also the opportunity to suggest to us topics that you would like
to have presented in open session in the future Council meetings. As a reminder, in September
there will be the presentation about the Intramural Research Program from Dan Castner (?) and
a Blue Ribbon Panel's report. If there are other items that you would like to have us
discuss, this is the time to suggest them.
ERIC GREEN: We have other things on the list for the fall but, yes, if you have things
we will add it. In fact, it is already looking like it will be a pretty busy September Council
meeting. It is a long way away, too. Okay. Mark.
MARK GUYER: The next item is announcements and items of interest. And the only one to
call to your attention is listed on the Open Session Agenda with a link to the PDF, the
quarterly report from the America College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. And that
brings us to the end of the Open Session unless anybody has any other items that they wish
to bring up.
ERIC GREEN: Do you do the conflict of interest?
MARK GUYER: I do do the conflict of interest now. And you'd be surprised but I have not
memorized that.
ERIC GREEN: I don't have it. [Laughter]
PARTICIPANT: I have.
MARK GUYER: I had to ask Comfort to bring it in but I haven't gotten it yet. So I looked
on the Web to see if there was anything. And there was a statement that is used by the
NIAID. So I'm going to read the NIAID statement, just as a little variety. It says the same
thing. "The following excerpts from the NIH Procedures
for Avoiding Conflict of Interest for Advisory Committee Members Manual should be called
to the attention of Council members:" The policy is that "special government employees
serving as members of advisory committees must avoid real or apparent conflicts of interest.
Responsible staff shall ensure that the procedures used to avoid conflicts of interest are followed
including a committee member leaving the room during reviews of applications or projects
which, to the member's knowledge, any of the following has a financial interest: the member;
his or her spouse; minor child; general partner; organization which the member serves as an
officer, director, trustee, general partner, or employee; or organization with which the
member is seeking employment. To document that a member does not participate
in the discussion or vote on an application in which there is a potential conflict as
described above, a statement to that effect is provided for the minutes and this statement
becomes a part of the meeting file." And we will ask you at this point to sign
the statement that you understand that. "At Council meetings when applications are
reviewed in groups without discussion "or identification of institutions, i.e., "en
bloc" actions, all Council members may be present and may participate. The vote of an
individual member in such instances does not apply to applications from any institutions
in which the member might be in conflict. A member who is employed by one campus of
a state multi-campus institution may participate in the review of an application from another
campus of the institution if the member does not hold a position with multi-campus responsibilities.
A member who is employed by a private institution may participate in the review of an application
from an affiliate of the private institution if the member does not hold a joint appointment
with that affiliate, the member does not have affiliate-wide responsibilities, and the member
has a conflict of interest waiver allowing the member to participate.
Members are reminded that all materials furnished for review purposes and discussions held during
the closed portions of the meetings are considered privileged information. The contents of those
documents and the outcome of those discussions during closed sessions may be disclosed only
by staff and only under appropriate circumstances. All communications from investigators to Council
members regarding actions on applications must be referred to the executive secretary
[of the Council]. Attempts by members to address questions from applicants are not within established
procedures and are inappropriate." And that is what the NIAID said.
ERIC GREEN: Good. MARK GUYER: Okay. So Comfort, you are collecting
the statements and then that is it. ERIC GREEN: So then, I think we will call
the Open Session to an end and ask anybody here who is here for the Open Session only
to please leave and we will reconvene in about one or two minutes in Closed Session. I don't
know who all is left here, just for the Open Session. But they can leave.