I submitted a FOIA request for the public comments via the HHS website on Jan. 13. So far the only response I have received is a postcard (??) notifying me that my request has been forwarded to NIH, Building 31, Room 5B35, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, etc. along with a phone number. Is "9000 Rockville Pike" really the same address as the street address "31 Center Drive" given on their
website?
@Wally thanks for the detailed post on the NIH response. I'll have to send an email to Ms Freeman to find out if they actually have my request. I'm guessing that sending a request directly to Ms Freeman might work better than using the HHS website.
My New Year's Resolution is to submit FOIA requests "early and often", just like voting...
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FOIA request submitted via website 1/13/2015
Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives
Office of Disease Prevention
Regarding the "2014 Pathways to Prevention Workshop: Advancing the Research on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome", I request the release of the public comments on the "Draft Report". A reference to these comments may be found at:
https://prevention.nih.gov/programs...rkshops/me-cfs/workshop-resources#draftreport
Public comments on the draft report will be accepted from Thursday, December 18, 2014 through Friday, January 16, 2015
I request that the documents be released after the close of the comment period.
I request that the documents be mailed to me as computer files on a CD.
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I request a fee waiver because disclosure of the information is in the public interest.
Release of these documents is in the public interest because they will help advocates and
the general public to understand how the public comments influenced the final report. The public comments need to be released because they are public, and advocates need to understand the public's reaction to the draft report in order to further their advocacy. The general public has a direct interest in knowing whether or not public comments actually influenced the report writers and the policies that result from the report.
Information obtained from these documents will be disseminated to the patient commnunity and
the general public via the "Phoenix Rising" internet forum. I have been an active participant on this forum, where I have posted over 500 messages to date.
I have no commercial interest that will be advanced by the release of the documents.