As a response to the atrocities of the Tuskegee Experiment in Black communities in the South, the National Research Act is passed, leading to the formation of the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research.

This commission is an advisory board intended to provide an ethical and moral framework for medical professionals and scientists who are conducting experiments that involve human subjects. It is also intended to conduct regular visits to experimental testing sites at state penitentiaries where pharmaceutical companies test drugs on incarcerated people in exchange for various incentives.

However, there is no accountability structure in place for physicians who violate the act.