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AAIC Embargo Policy
The Alzheimer's Association International Conference® (AAIC®) is a well-recognized, global platform for news regarding advances in Alzheimer's and dementia research. If you are interested in having the research you present at AAIC eligible for inclusion in AAIC news releases and news conferences, it must not be published (online or hard copy) or presented, in whole or in part, in any manner, previous to presentation at AAIC. (Note: The Association reserves the right to also include previously published material in its news program, if it so chooses, but this is generally not the case.)
All materials submitted to AAIC are embargoed for publication and broadcast until the officially scheduled date and time of presentation at AAIC, unless the Alzheimer's Association provides written notice of change of date and/or time in advance, such as on an AAIC news release. If there are questions, please contact the Alzheimer's Association Public Relations Department at media@alz.org.
- The news embargo for abstracts and scientific presentations included in the AAIC news program will be listed on the news release that includes that abstract/presentation. This is regardless of the actual time of presentation at AAIC.
- News embargoes for plenaries and oral sessions not included in the AAIC news program are at the beginning of each individual talk (not the overall session). For example, for an oral presentation session starting at 2:00 pm where each talk is 15 minutes, the news embargo on the:
- 1st talk = 2:00 pm
- 2nd talk = 2:15 pm
- 3rd talk = 2:30 pm
- The news embargo on a poster session is at the scheduled beginning of the session.
Public and news announcements made in advance of AAIC that a scientist or company is scheduled to make a presentation at AAIC may include the date, time, location and topic of presentation, but may not include the methods, results and/or conclusions, nor the type or direction of results, even if that is included in the name/title of the submitted abstract. For that reason, authors are discouraged from putting the type and/or direction of results in the abstract title.
All news media representatives, scientists and their funders, and exhibitors/sponsors agree to honor the news embargoes and release times stated on news releases and other news materials issued by the Alzheimer's Association/AAIC.
If a reporter or news media outlet breaks an AAIC news embargo, the Alzheimer's Association reserves the right to revoke their press access and credentials for the current event and future Alzheimer's Association conferences and events.
If a scientist or company that is a participant in an AAIC news briefing or news release is discovered to have broken the news embargo, or encouraged the breaking of a news embargo, the Alzheimer's Association reserves the right to remove the participant from the news briefing and remove that scientist's/company's information from the news release. In addition, consequences for violation of the news embargo may include retraction of the accepted abstract from AAIC and/or loss of privileges of presenting research at AAIC in the future.
SEC-Related Issues
If a publicly traded company is advised that it is legally required to disclose certain data or other information from a confidential AAIC abstract in advance of the AAIC news embargo to satisfy requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission or a corresponding regulatory body in a country where the company's stock is traded (collectively, "SEC"), that company must submit to AAIC, in advance of the SEC-required disclosure:
- Written notification of the time, manner and recipients of the company's release; and
- A letter signed by the company's legal counsel, advising that (a) public disclosure of the information is necessary for the company to comply with applicable securities laws, and (b) the information disclosed is the minimum necessary for such compliance.
If this is done, the abstract will not be automatically rejected or removed from AAIC on the basis of the SEC-required release of data or other information, though the situation is still subject to AAIC review. At a minimum, AAIC may in its discretion change the position of the abstract in AAIC, e.g., from oral presentation to poster. The abstract will most likely be ineligible for the AAIC news program.
The company may issue a news release at the time of SEC-required disclosure. The AAIC abstract itself may not be released publicly by the company or lead author. Mention may be made that full details will be presented at AAIC. AAIC would prefer that the news release:
- Summarize study data cited in the abstract in a qualitative rather than quantitative manner.
- Avoid interpretations about the implications of the data for practice.
As an example, a statement that a study "met its primary endpoint of improving cognition" is qualitative, while "ADAS-Cog scores remained stable for 18 months in the treated group" would be considered quantitative. A quote such as "We are encouraged by these promising results" would not be viewed as interpretive, while a quote such as "These findings support [drug] as first line therapy in mild to moderate Alzheimer's" would be seen as an interpretation of the data.
News Embargo-Related FAQ's:
Is advance promotion of general topics, speakers, or presentation times permitted?
Public and news announcements made in advance of AAIC that a scientist or company is scheduled to make a presentation of AAIC may include the date, time, location and topic of presentation, but may not include the methods, results and/or the type or direction of results, even if that is included in the name/title of the submitted abstract. For that reason, authors are discouraged from putting the type and/or direction of results in the abstract title.
Is it acceptable to submit an abstract that presents partial data from a manuscript submitted for publication?
It is not acceptable to submit partial data from a manuscript already submitted for publication AND published in any form before the AAIC news embargo date/time. It is acceptable only if the author(s) and journal guarantee in writing to AAIC that any publication would not occur until after the AAIC news embargo date/time.
Will the submission of this abstract to affect the publication of our manuscript?
No. These review processes are independent. The thresholds for acceptance between conference abstracts and journal manuscripts are very different.