The NIH Scientific Management Review Board will hold a teleconference on Wednesday, February 23, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Eastern time. The discussion will focus on the NIH proposal to create a new National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) and its impact on other programs at NIH, including the National Center for Research Resources.
The teleconference is open to the public and time will be available for public comment, but those wishing to make comments need to sign up in advance. Details are in a Federal Register notice 
.
The toll-free number to participate in the teleconference is 1-800-779-1545. The participant passcode to give the meeting operator is “NIH.”
How reassuring that the SMRB has apparently reached the pinnacle of efficiency in that they believe they can, in just two hypoglycemic hours, present a comprehensive review of and then deliberate the potential risks, benefits, and impact of creating NCATS and abolishing NCRR on the NIH and the extramural research community as well as “next steps regarding future SMRB activities” … while allowing ample time for the invited public comment.