Key Dates

Related Announcements

• September 1, 2022- Time-Sensitive Opportunities for Health Research (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) See NOFO  PAR-22-233:

Issued by

Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR)

Purpose

Notice of Change to Special Areas of Research Interest for PAR-22-233 "Time-Sensitive Opportunities for Health Research (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)"

Currently reads

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

NCI supports time-sensitive evaluation of programs, policies, and major events that concern aspects of cancer prevention and control including, but not limited to:

Evaluation of the effects of:

• Laws, regulations, or policies that may influence cancer risk factors including use of tobacco, alcohol, and other substances, sun safety and indoor tanning, diet, physical activity, and sleep.
• Changes to the built and natural environment involving factors such as housing, transportation infrastructure, food environment, parks and other green and blue spaces and the potential effect on cancer risk factors, exposure to environmental carcinogens, access to care, or other cancer-related health outcomes.
• Emerging programs and policies related to cancer screening, diagnosis, vaccination (e.g., HPV), treatment, and survivorship.
• New policies, programs, and practices in cancer care delivery related to standards of care, health insurance coverage, access to services, reimbursement, and other factors that influence delivery of cancer care services and its outcomes
• The impact and response to public health emergencies or disasters (natural or man-made) on acute stress, allostatic load or other aspects of accumulated stress, or cancer-related care, including preventative, diagnostic, treatment, and survivorship care.

Proposals evaluating policy and program efforts and responses to major events from diverse sectors, including government, educational, non-profit, and commercial sectors are of interest.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

NICHD has particular interest in research on time-sensitive events, policies, programs, or infrastructure changes on vulnerable populations falling within the NICHD scientific mission area, including infants, children, and adolescents and pregnant and post-partum people; individuals with physical and/or intellectual disabilities; and children who are unhoused or in foster care. The NICHD Strategic Plan outlines high priority areas for the Institute.

Examples of research questions include but are not limited to the following:

• Understanding the short- and long-term impact of the time-sensitive event on child development outcomes, as well as family functioning.
• The impact of climate/environmental changes on dietary patterns, food choices, and eating behaviors.
• How changes in access to school lunch programs affect dietary patterns, food choices, and eating behaviors in children and their families.
• The impact of the event and the concomitant public health response on the management of complex medical conditions, critical illness, and severe, life-threatening injuries in children.
• The impact of the event on emergency medical services to children (EMSC) and the availability of these services during and after the event to affected children in low- to moderate- resourced communities.
• Studies identifying and developing data sources, tools and resources needed to strengthen tracking, reporting and communication among systems of care for traumatized, injured and affected children during and after the unexpected event.
• The impact of the event and the concomitant public health response on children and adults with physical and/or intellectual disabilities, and disparities in outcomes experienced by persons with disabilities compared to persons without disabilities.
• Studies that examine how unexpected disruptions in access to therapies and special education services affect developmental, behavioral and functional outcomes in children and adults with disabilities.

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

NIDA welcomes time-sensitive priority research areas in substance use epidemiology, prevention, and health services, including responses to unexpected and time-sensitive:

(1) emerging drug issues (e.g., the ability to look into a large acute spike in opioid or synthetic cannabinoid use/overdoses in a particular community; examination of drug markets as they are impacted by immediate circumstances, such as COVID-19 pandemic);

(2) emerging cannabis trends and topics related to the shifting policy landscape, related to imminent policy change;

(3) prescription drug abuse research opportunities (e.g., new state or local efforts);

(4) medical system issues (e.g., opportunities to understand addiction services in the evolving health care system);

(5) criminal or juvenile justice opportunities (e.g., new system and/or structural level changes) that relate to drug abuse and access and provision of health care service.

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

The mission of NIMHD is to lead scientific research to improve minority health and reduce health disparities. NIMHD focuses on all aspects of health and health care for racial and ethnic minority populations in the U.S. and the full continuum of health disparity causes as well as the interrelation of these causes. NIMHD projects must include a focus on one or more of the following populations that NIH-designates as experiencing health disparities in the United States and its territories: African Americans, Latinos/Hispanics, American Indians and Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, less privileged socioeconomic groups, underserved rural populations, and sexual and gender minorities. Comparison groups/populations may also be included as appropriate for the research questions posed. NIMHD encourages research projects that use approaches encompassing multiple domains of influence (e.g., biological, behavioral, sociocultural, environmental, physical environment, health system) and multiple levels of influence (e.g., individual, interpersonal, family, peer group, community, societal) to understand and address health disparities (see the NIMHD Research Framework, https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/about/overview/research-framework.html, for more information). Studies based outside the U.S. or its territories will not be supported by NIMHD under this FOA. Time-sensitive research that NIMHD is interested in supporting includes:

• The effects of policy changes on health outcomes, and mechanisms of those health outcomes, in populations that experience health disparities, including: immigration policy, health care coverage, gun policy, police use-of-force policy, environmental regulations, prescribing practices, and vaccination requirements
• The immediate and longer-term impact of natural disasters on the health of populations that experience health disparities (particularly through the lens of understanding how climate change is impacting health disparities)
• Effects of changes to the built environment (e.g., greenspace, pedestrian walkways, bike paths) on health and health behaviors for populations that experience health disparities

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)

NINR supports research to solve pressing health challenges and inform practice and policy - optimizing health and advancing health equity into the future. NINR discovers solutions to health challenges through the lenses of health equity, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Drawing on the strengths of nursing’s holistic, contextualized perspective, core values, and broad reach, NINR funds multilevel and cross-sectoral research that examines the factors that impact health across the many settings in which nurses work, including homes, schools, workplaces, clinics, justice settings, and the community. Observational, intervention, and implementation research are of interest to NINR.

Research is encouraged in the following areas:

• Factors involved in a response to a time-sensitive event that affect health equity, including mechanisms involved.
• Effects of social determinants of health on the response to and health effects resulting from a time-sensitive event.
• Prevention and early detection of health effects of a time-sensitive event, including plans for health promotion during and following the event.
• Examining clinical, organizational and/or policy changes to address health related needs during and following a time-sensitive event.

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

NIAAA will support time-sensitive research in public health priority areas in alcohol and related substance use epidemiology, prevention, and health services, including but not necessarily limited to:

• time-sensitive research opportunities to study the effects of changes in alcohol-related policies, including effects on combined use of alcohol and other substances and evaluation of the implementation or effectiveness of policies, programs, or practices affecting alcohol-related behaviors and outcomes;
• time-sensitive research opportunities to study changes in factors affecting access, delivery, or financing of health care services for alcohol use disorder and alcohol-related conditions;
• time-sensitive research opportunities to study alcohol-related effects associated with sudden and severe events, such as natural disasters, acts of war, or epidemics;
• time-sensitive research opportunities to study the effects on diversity, health equity, inclusion, or access of unanticipated events affecting alcohol-related behaviors and outcomes; and
• time-sensitive research opportunities to inform state or local organizations of the alcohol-related consequences of new or changing policies, programs, or practices.

National Institue of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)

NIAMS is interested in applications focused on evaluating time-sensitive natural experiments that concern populations with or at risk for development of NIAMS core-mission diseases (arthritic and other rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and skin disorders. Examples include, but are not limited to, time-sensitive natural experiments of changes to the neighborhood food and physical activity environments on the health of populations experiencing or at risk for NIAMS core-mission diseases. Studies among underserved, vulnerable, diverse and health disparities populations are encouraged.

Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)

The ODP is the lead office at the NIH responsible for assessing, facilitating, and stimulating research in disease prevention. In partnership with the 27 NIH Institutes and Centers, the ODP strives to increase the scope, quality, dissemination, and impact of NIH-supported prevention research. The ODP co-funds research that has strong implications for disease and injury prevention and health equity and that includes innovative and appropriate research design, measurement, and analysis methods. The ODP has a specific interest in projects that develop and/or test preventive interventions. Of particular interest is prevention research addressing leading causes and risk factors for premature morbidity and mortality, dissemination and implementation, and health disparities. The ODP does not award grants; therefore, applications must be relevant to the objectives of at least one of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers (IC) listed in this announcement. Please contact the relevant IC Scientific/Research Contact(s) listed for questions regarding IC research priorities and funding. ODP only accepts co-funding requests from NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs). For additional information about ODP, please refer to the ODP Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2019 2023.

Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH)

ORWH works with the 27 NIH Institutes and Centers to advance rigorous research of relevance to women and individuals assigned female at birth. For this funding opportunity, ORWH is particularly interested in intersectional research into the health impacts of time-sensitive events, policies, programs, or infrastructure changes on women, including:

• Impacts of policy changes on the health of women and people who can become pregnant (e.g., state abortion regulations, extensions to postpartum insurance coverage)
• Impacts of policy changes that influence access to women’s preventative health services (e.g., contraception, HPV vaccination, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP))
• Gender-based violence following time-sensitive events (e.g. natural disasters; pandemics)

 Modified to read

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

NCI supports time-sensitive evaluation of programs, policies, and major events that concern aspects of cancer prevention and control across the cancer control continuum including, but not limited to:

Evaluation of the effects of:

• Laws, regulations, or policies that may influence cancer risk factors including use of tobacco, alcohol, and other substances, sun safety and indoor tanning, vaccination (e.g., HPV), diet, physical activity, sleep, and environmental factors.
• Changes to the built and natural environment involving factors such as housing, transportation infrastructure, food environment, parks and other green and blue spaces and the potential effect on cancer risk factors, exposure to environmental carcinogens, access to care, or other cancer-related health outcomes.
• Emerging programs and policies related to cancer screening, diagnosis, vaccination (e.g., HPV), treatment, and survivorship.
• New policies, programs, and practices in cancer care delivery related to standards of care, health insurance coverage, access to services, telehealth, reimbursement, and other factors (e.g., supply chain disruptors) that influence delivery of cancer care services and its outcomes
• The impact and response to public health emergencies or disasters (natural or man-made) on acute stress, allostatic load or other aspects of accumulated stress, or cancer-related care, including preventative, diagnostic, treatment, and survivorship care.
• Natural and man-made disasters (e.g., chemical spills, fumes, weather events, and fires), and resulting environmental exposures on biomarkers, etiology, and healthcare delivery across the cancer control continuum.
• Changes to media platforms, communication policies, or the public information environment that may affect cancer-related information sharing and cancer-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors.

Proposals evaluating policy and program efforts and responses to major events from diverse sectors, including government, educational, non-profit, and commercial sectors are of interest.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

NICHD has particular interest in research on time-sensitive events, policies, programs, or infrastructure changes on vulnerable populations falling within the NICHD scientific mission area, including infants, children, and adolescents and pregnant and post-partum people; individuals with physical and/or intellectual disabilities; and children who are unhoused or in foster care.  The NICHD Strategic Plan outlines high priority areas for the Institute.

Examples of research questions include but are not limited to the following:

Understanding the short- and long-term impact of the time-sensitive event on child development outcomes, as well as family functioning.

The impact of climate/environmental changes on dietary patterns, food choices, and eating behaviors.

How changes in access to school lunch programs affect dietary patterns, food choices, and eating behaviors in children and their families.

The impact of the event and the concomitant public health response on the management of complex medical conditions, critical illness, and severe, life-threatening injuries in children.

The impact of the event on emergency medical services to children (EMSC) and the availability of these services during and after the event to affected children in low- to moderate- resourced communities.

Studies identifying and developing data sources, tools and resources needed to strengthen tracking, reporting and communication among systems of care for traumatized, injured and affected children during and after the unexpected event.

The impact of the event and the concomitant public health response on children and adults with physical and/or intellectual disabilities, and disparities in outcomes experienced by persons with disabilities compared to persons without disabilities.

Studies that examine how unexpected disruptions in access to therapies and special education services affect developmental, behavioral and functional outcomes in children and adults with disabilities.

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

This notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) will support pilot, feasibility or exploratory research in priority areas in substance use epidemiology, prevention, and health services, including: 1) responses to sudden and severe emerging drug issues (e.g. the ability to look into a large and sudden spike in opioid or synthetic cannabinoid use/overdoses in a particular community); 2) responses to emerging marijuana trends and topics related to the shifting policy landscape, related to imminent policy change; 3) responses to unexpected and time-sensitive prescription drug abuse research opportunities (e.g., new state or local efforts); 4) responses to unexpected and time-sensitive medical system issues (e.g. opportunities to understand addiction services in the evolving health care system); 5) responses to unexpected and time-sensitive criminal or juvenile justice opportunities (e.g. new system and/or structural level changes) that relate to drug abuse and access and provision of health care service; 6) partnerships between researchers and state or local organizations to support the evaluation of new local policies, programs, or practices in response to public health emergencies (e.g., the opioid crisis); 7) research examining how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted drug markets and overdose risk; 8) research examining health outcomes associated with telehealth compared to in-person psychiatric care (e.g. risk of diversion/misuse, reduced treatment gap); 9) research examining the impact of the discontinuation of the Medicaid continuous enrollment provision that was enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic on populations with substance use disorders, and 10) research to understand outcomes related to states receiving and implementing Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 1115 waivers that allow Medicaid to pay for health care services in carceral settings.

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

The mission of NIMHD is to lead scientific research to improve minority health and reduce health disparities. NIMHD focuses on all aspects of health and health care for racial and ethnic minority populations in the U.S. and the full continuum of health disparity causes as well as the interrelation of these causes. NIMHD projects should include a focus on racial and ethnic minority populations (African Americans/Blacks, Latinos/Hispanics, American Indians and Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders) and or less privileged socioeconomic groups, Projects may also examine intersectionality of race or ethnic minority identity and/or low socioeconomic status with rurality and/or sexual and gender minority identity and/or disability condition. Comparison groups/populations may also be included as appropriate for the research questions posed. NIMHD encourages research projects that use approaches encompassing multiple domains of influence (e.g., biological, behavioral, sociocultural, environmental, physical environment, health system) and multiple levels of influence (e.g., individual, interpersonal, family, peer group, community, societal) to understand and address health disparities (see the NIMHD Research Framework, https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/about/overview/research-framework.html, for more information). Studies based outside the U.S. or its territories will not be supported by NIMHD under this FOA. Time-sensitive research that NIMHD is interested in supporting includes:

The effects of policy changes on health outcomes, and mechanisms of those health outcomes, in populations that experience health disparities, including: immigration policy, health care coverage, gun policy, police use-of-force policy, environmental regulations, prescribing practices, and vaccination requirements

The immediate and longer-term impact of natural disasters on the health of populations that experience health disparities (particularly through the lens of understanding how climate change is impacting health disparities)

Effects of changes to the built environment (e.g., greenspace, pedestrian walkways, bike paths) on health and health behaviors for populations that experience health disparities

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)

NINR supports research to solve pressing health challenges and inform practice and policy - optimizing health and advancing health equity into the future. NINR discovers solutions to health challenges through the lenses of health equity, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Drawing on the strengths of nursing’s holistic, contextualized perspective, core values, and broad reach, NINR funds multilevel and cross-sectoral research that examines the factors that impact health across the many settings in which nurses work, including homes, schools, workplaces, clinics, justice settings, and the community. Observational, intervention, and implementation research are of interest to NINR.

Research is encouraged in the following areas:

Factors involved in a response to a time-sensitive event that affect health equity, including mechanisms involved.

Effects of social determinants of health on the response to and health effects resulting from a time-sensitive event.

Prevention and early detection of health effects of a time-sensitive event, including plans for health promotion during and following the event.

Examining clinical, organizational and/or policy changes to address health related needs during and following a time-sensitive event.

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

NIAAA will support time-sensitive research in public health priority areas in alcohol and related substance use epidemiology, prevention, and health services, including but not necessarily limited to:

time-sensitive research opportunities to study the effects of changes in alcohol-related policies, including effects on combined use of alcohol and other substances and evaluation of the implementation or effectiveness of policies, programs, or practices affecting alcohol-related behaviors and outcomes;

time-sensitive research opportunities to study changes in factors affecting access, delivery, or financing of health care services for alcohol use disorder and alcohol-related conditions;

time-sensitive research opportunities to study alcohol-related effects associated with sudden and severe events, such as natural disasters, acts of war, or epidemics;

time-sensitive research opportunities to study the effects on diversity, health equity, inclusion, or access of unanticipated events affecting alcohol-related behaviors and outcomes; and

time-sensitive research opportunities to inform state or local organizations of the alcohol-related consequences of new or changing policies, programs, or practices.

National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)

NIAMS is interested in applications focused on evaluating time-sensitive natural experiments that concern populations with or at risk for development of NIAMS core-mission diseases (arthritic and other rheumatic, musculoskeletal, and skin disorders. Examples include, but are not limited to, time-sensitive natural experiments of changes to the neighborhood food and physical activity environments on the health of populations experiencing or at risk for NIAMS core-mission diseases. Studies among underserved, vulnerable, diverse and health disparities populations are encouraged.

Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)

The ODP is the lead office at the NIH responsible for assessing, facilitating, and stimulating research in disease prevention. In partnership with the 27 NIH Institutes and Centers, the ODP strives to increase the scope, quality, dissemination, and impact of NIH-supported prevention research. The ODP co-funds research that has strong implications for disease and injury prevention and health equity and that includes innovative and appropriate research design, measurement, and analysis methods. The ODP has a specific interest in projects that develop and/or test preventive interventions. Of particular interest is prevention research addressing leading causes and risk factors for premature morbidity and mortality, dissemination and implementation, and health disparities.  The ODP does not award grants; therefore, applications must be relevant to the objectives of at least one of the participating NIH Institutes and Centers (IC) listed in this announcement. Please contact the relevant IC Scientific/Research Contact(s) listed for questions regarding IC research priorities and funding. ODP only accepts co-funding requests from NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs). For additional information about ODP, please refer to the ODP Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2019–2023.

Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH)

ORWH works with the 27 NIH Institutes and Centers to advance rigorous research of relevance to women and individuals assigned female at birth. For this funding opportunity, ORWH is particularly interested in intersectional research into the health impacts of time-sensitive events, policies, programs, or infrastructure changes on women, including:

Impacts of policy changes on the health of women and people who can become pregnant (e.g., state abortion regulations, extensions to postpartum insurance coverage)

Impacts of policy changes that influence access to women’s preventative health services (e.g., contraception, HPV vaccination, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP))

Gender-based violence following time-sensitive events (e.g., natural disasters; pandemics)

All other aspects of this NOFO will remain unchanged.

Inquiries

Please direct all inquiries to:

Sarika Parasuraman, PhD, MPH
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR)
Telephone: 301-594-1205
Email: sarika.parasuraman@mail.nih.gov