While open access implies that information doesn’t cost anything to access, it does sometimes involve costs to the author to publish the work. Hybrid journals (a subscription journal in which some of the articles are open access) and fully open access journals often require an article processing fee or charge.
As of August 1, 2023, the Northwestern University Open Access Fund is no longer accepting applications for individual APCs. The Northwestern Libraries have shifted support for Open Access publishing to institutional-level initiatives. Read more in this announcement.
See also the GalterGuide: Open Access Publishing.
NIH funded researchers may consider including the cost of publishing in their NIH grant applications, according to the NIH Grants Policy Statement .