We published in Nature Medicine in 2025 for free. In 2026, it cost us $12,850

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In 2025, publication in Nature Medicine was free for a study funded by NIH, but costs rose to $12,850 in 2026 due to new open-access fees.
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The NIH Public Access Policy requires NIH-funded authors to deposit manuscripts in PubMed Central without embargo, but some publishers still impose fees.
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For-profit publishers like Springer Nature and Elsevier charge significant open-access fees, creating barriers to public access for taxpayer-funded research.
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The current system places NIH-funded scientists in a difficult position, as many journals now require expensive fees for immediate public access.
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Nonprofit journals can comply with federal policies without imposing high fees, suggesting a need to support such journals over for-profit options.

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