The Institute of Medicine was asked to provide guidance on the future of the Air Force Health Study (AFHS, also know as the Ranch Hand Study), a long-term epidemiologic analysis of Air Force personnel who conducted aerial spraying of herbicides during the Vietnam War. 

The committee's final report, Disposition of the Air Force Health Study, concludes that the medical records, data, and biological specimens collected in the study, which is scheduled to close on September 30, 2006, are a trove of valuable research material. 

It recommends that--after the Air Force Health Study's scheduled end--these assets be made available to researchers through a custodian that takes an active role in fostering their use. Several options for managing the assets are presented.  No matter where the AFHS materials go, that custodian will need a secure source of funding. The report also recommends that Congress allocate at least $250,000 annually for three years to promote research using the data and specimens.