Effect of federal programs on health sciences libraries

The radical changes and improvements in health sciences libraries during the last quarter century have been primarily achieved through the leadership of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) in the application of technology and in the creation of a biomedical communications network. This article describes principal programs and activities of the National Library of Medicine and their effects on health sciences libraries: the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (MEDLARS), implementation of the Medical Library Assistance Act (MLAA), and defense of "fair use" of copyrighted material. The article briefly summarizes more recent Federal activities which directly affect access to and dissemination of health information and concludes with a summary of problems for which solutions must be found if health sciences libraries are to be prepared to meet the future. It is clear from comparing the programs described with current government attitudes that, although the Federal government has promoted advancement in the dissemination of biomedical information in the past, this trend is reversing, and Federal funding to libraries is decreasing while the cost of accessing information is increasing.