On June 10, 1993, the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993, PL 103-4 was signed into law [49]. The legislation directed the National Institutes of Health to establish guidelines for inclusion of women and minority groups and their subpopulations in NIH-funded clinical research, unless a clear and compelling rationale and justification that inclusion is inappropriate with respect to the health of the subjects or the purpose of the research. Despite the enactment of legislation specific to the inclusion of minorities in health-related research and the adoption of codes, guidelines, procedures, and regulations to prevent unethical behaviors in research and protect the rights and well-being of persons involved, the contribution of specimens to biorepositories by African Americans and the participation of African Americans in health-related genetic research are limited.
