Policies

Statement of Practice: Flexibility Initiative: Two-Year Approvals - ARCHIVED

IRBMED
May 1, 2015 11:15 am

This flexibility initiative was active May 1, 2015 - June 10, 2018. It is obsolete as of June 11, 2018.

Note: IRB applications granted a two-year approval may not be used to support proposals or future awards involving federal funding.

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  • I. STATEMENT OF PRACTICE

    Under the current federal regulations for human research, studies are required to undergo continuing review of the research at least annually, depending on the degree of risk to the subjects. Many research studies under the oversight of IRBMED pose no more than minimal risk to the subjects. Thus, it is unlikely that IRB determinations about potential benefits, informed consent, or risks to subjects would be affected by new information gathered from the research or from other sources if the approval period were lengthened beyond one year.

    To exercise existing flexibility in the application of federal regulations to non-federally funded studies, IRBMED will undertake a flexibility initiative by issuing two year approval periods for certain types of studies. The longer approval period will eliminate the need for principal investigators to submit scheduled continuing reviews (SCRs) on an annual basis.

  • II. PROCESS

    To qualify for two-year approval studies must

    AND

    • Must not include any of the following:

    New or renewing applications meeting the criteria cited above will be reviewed by the IRBMED to determine that subject protections comply with federal regulations. If appropriate protections are in place, and there are no additional extenuating circumstances, IRBMED may issue a two year approval. All other regulatory requirements, including amendments, adverse event, and ORIO reporting, remain unchanged.

    Examples of qualifying research may include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following:

    • Secondary use of identifiable data/specimens (both prospective and retrospective), not otherwise exempt
    • Survey, focus group, or interview projects not otherwise exempt
  • III. RESOURCES

Questions?

Contact us at irbmed@umich.edu or 734-763-4768 / (Fax 734-763-1234)

2800 Plymouth Road, Building 520, Room 3214, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2800

A list of IRBMED staff is available in the Personnel Directory, or view the list of Regulatory Teams.

Edited By: bpsea@umich.edu
Last Updated: June 21, 2018 9:00 AM