[Part 1 of 4]
[Federal Register: December 1, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 230)]
[Notices]
[Page 66188-66190]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr01de98-106]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
National Institutes of Health; Office of the Director; Notice of
Call for Nominations for the Director's Council of Public
Representatives
The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Federal government's
primary agency for supporting and conducting medical research leading
to the improvement in the nation's health, has established a new
national advisory council--the Director's Council of Public
Representatives (COPR). The Chair of the COPR is the Director of the
National Institutes of Health. This notice lays out a process for the
selection of members of the first COPR and seeks nominations.
Background
On September 23, 1998, the NIH Director chaired a meeting on public
participation in NIH activities (FR Doc. 98-24463 Filed 9-10-98;
8:45 a.m.). At the meeting, 23 individual public participants invited
by the NIH discussed future activities and responsibilities of the
proposed NIH Director's Council of Public Representatives (COPR),
which will serve as a forum for discussing issues and concerns and
exchanging viewpoints that are important to NIH policies, programs,
and research priorities. The individual participants at the meeting
also discussed the processes, mechanisms, and criteria that should be
used for identifying appropriate candidates to serve on the COPR. A
notice about the creation of the COPR was published in the Federal
Register on November 17, 1998 (FR Doc. 98-30695 Filed 11-16-98; 8:45
a.m.).
The COPR will help bring to NIH the concerns and interests of the
many external publics that have a stake in the agency's activities,
programs, policies, and research. In addition to serving as a forum,
the COPR will assist the NIH in enhancing the participation of the
public in myriad NIH activities that have an impact upon the public,
in increasing public understanding of the NIH and its programs, and
in bringing important matters of public interest forward for
discussion in public settings.
The COPR will consist of up to 20 individuals who have an interest in
the NIH's mission. The NIH will bring together these individuals from
diverse backgrounds approximately twice each year, enabling them to
interact directly with NIH leaders on a wide range of programs and
issues. In addition to these two meetings annually, the COPR may
suggest other activities, subject to approval by the Chair of the
COPR, the Director of the NIH. Members of the first COPR will serve
one, two, or three-year terms. In subsequent years, members will
serve three-year terms.
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