The Korea Bio Association noted on the 16th that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has blocked access to medical databases for certain countries of concern. The countries subject to the access ban include China, Hong Kong, Macau, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela.
Attention is drawn to the fact that the action by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), which designated South Korea as a "sensitive country," took effect on this day and whether similar research restrictions will be imposed on South Korea in the medical field.
The government stated that the chances are slim, but voices are calling for proactive measures to support and strengthen U.S.-South Korea medical research exchanges, as movements for policy changes by U.S. authorities are also detected.
According to the Bio Association, the NIH has blocked access to medical data for researchers from countries of concern since the 4th.
The data to which this rule applies includes a wide range of medical-related information, including cancer incidence information from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), as well as Alzheimer's disease, mental health disorders, substance abuse, and adolescent brain development.
It remains unclear whether researchers based in the U.S. have lost access to the NIH databases to transmit data for "non-commercial purposes" to researchers from countries of concern.
Some are paying attention to the similar restriction measures applied to the medical field following the DOE's designation of South Korea as a sensitive country. The DOE previously added South Korea as "other designated country" to the Sensitive and Other Designated Countries List (SCL) in January during the Biden administration.
This restricts research collaboration, technology sharing, and more with countries included in the SCL such as South Korea, North Korea, China, Brazil, Argentina, India, and Iran-Iraq and requires prior approval.
South Korea is at the lowest level among the three tiers of sensitive countries, but free entry has been restricted. A researcher from South Korea wishing to visit a U.S. research institute must submit relevant documents at least 45 days in advance and receive separate approval.
The scientific community believes that the designation of sensitive countries will not have an immediate impact on research collaboration. Health authorities also said, "The designation of sensitive countries is related to measures by the Department of Energy, so the impact on medical research collaboration is limited," adding, "There are no issues with U.S.-South Korea research exchanges."
The Ministry of Health and Welfare explained that South Korea will host the "HIROs meeting" on June 16-17 to discuss global health and medical research collaboration, with participation from the U.S. NIH, the Gates Foundation, and representative health institutions from Europe, the U.K., and Japan. Lee Seung-kyu, Vice Chairman of the Korea Bio Association, also stated, "The NIH measure is separate from the DOE's designation of sensitive countries, so it will not have an impact."
However, some have raised concerns that the procedures for researchers to utilize medical data could become more complex. The Ministry of Health and Welfare and researchers in the medical sector noted that sharing of samples or data for medical research has not been easy in the first place.
A domestic researcher, who requested anonymity, expressed concern that "not only the NIH but also the data-sharing policies of agencies under health authorities, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), are changing overall, which could restrict medical research collaboration." He added, "A proactive governmental response is necessary to strengthen and support medical research exchanges between South Korea and the U.S."