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President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research Records

Collection

Identifier: BRL-003

The collection documents 28 meetings of the President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research held between 1980 and 1983. It includes briefing books, subject files, meeting minutes/transcripts, and other documents related to the Commission's work. This congressionally mandated group was formed in 1978, succeeding the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research. It worked independently from January 1980 to March 1983.

Dates

Majority of material found within 1978 - 1983
1964 - 1983

Creator

United States. President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

Materials are open without restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers are solely responsible for determining the copyright status of the materials being used, establishing who the copyright owner is, locating the copyright owner, and obtaining permission for intended use.

Extent

26.4 Cubic Feet (in 66 manuscript boxes)

Additional Description

Historical Note

The Commission was created in November 1978 by Public Law 95-622 to study issues such as the definition of death, genetic testing and counseling, and the differences in the availability of health services depending on income or residence. It succeeded the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research. President Jimmy Carter appointed the eleven original members of the commission in July of 1979 and the Senate confirmed Morris B. Abram as the chairman of the commission on September 29, 1979. The Commission met a total of 28 times and ultimately published 11 reports, two of which were made up of three volumes, on these topics and their implications. The commission worked independently from January 1980 to March 31, 1983 when its authority expired.

A detailed chronology of the Commission is available in an earlier version of this guide, which is available here: https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/708752

Arrangement

The collection is organized into the following series:

Series 1: Correspondence

Series 2: Subject Files

Series 3: Meeting Files

Series 4: Report Files

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The collection was acquired sometime prior to 1986. The collection was donated by Commission staff members, including Alexander Morgan Capron and Barbara Mishkin. Transcripts for meetings 9 and 18 are the gift of Father Robert C. Baumiller, 1991. Some materials found in the collection may have been acquired from other sources. The accessions associated with this collection are 001, 022, and 045.

Existence and Location of Copies

Portions of the collection are available in DigitalGeorgetown's U.S. Bioethics Commissions Archival Collection.

Related Materials

The Bioethics Research Library also hold a collection on the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, which was the predecessor to this commission.

Processing Information

The collection was processed in 1987 by Anita Nolen. An updated and expanded guide to the collection was prepared by Laura Ruth Barry, Laura Guidry-Grimes, and Charles N. Norton and published in March 2014. A resource record for the collection as created in ArchivesSpace at this time. In 2020, John Zarrillo updated the guide for DACS-compliance.

Storage Location: This collection is held in offsite storage.

Subjects

Related Names

Creator

United States. President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research (Organization)

Source

Mishkin, Barbara (Person)
Baumiller, Robert C. (Person)

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title: Guide to the President’s Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research Records
Status: completed
Author: Laura Ruth Barry, Laura Guidry-Grimes, Anita Nolen, Charles N. Norton, and John Zarrillo
Date: May 2020
Description rules: Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description: Finding aid written in English

Revision Statements

2014-03-01: An updated and expanded guide to the collection was prepared by Laura Ruth Barry, Laura Guidry-Grimes, and Charles N. Norton.
2020-05-12: John Zarrillo imported the collection's inventory into ArchivesSpace and updated the guide to the collection for DACS-compliance.