Abstract
The Belmont Report has had an enormous influence on the ethics of biomedical research over the last several decades. It has served as a philosophical foundation for federal regulations governing human subjects research, and its principles are well known to individuals across the research enterprise. Given the outsized influence Belmont has enjoyed as a core document in bioethics, it is worth reminding ourselves of the historical context in which it came to be. In this article, we examine the societal forces that helped bring about the Belmont Report and that shaped its conception of ethical research. In turn, we set the stage for discussions on whether Belmont remains applicable as the research enterprise...