Participating Organization(s)	U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) The FDA does not follow the NIH Page Limitation Guidelines or the Enhanced Peer Review Scoring Criteria. Applicants are encouraged to consult with FDA Agency Contacts for additional information regarding page limits and the FDA Objective Review Process.
Components of Participating Organizations	Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH)
Funding Opportunity Title	Advancing Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance Infrastructure and Epidemiologic Methodologies through Multi-stakeholder Partnership (U01)
Activity Code	U01 Research Project Cooperative Agreements
Announcement Type	New
Related Notices	June 12, 2017 - This PAR has been reissued as RFA-FD-18-002. April 11, 2016 - Notice of Change to Application Due Dates and Expiration Date for PAR-13-232. See Notice NOT-FD-16-008. NOT-OD-16-004 - NIH & AHRQ Announce Upcoming Changes to Policies, Instructions and Forms for 2016 Grant Applications (November 18, 2015) NOT-OD-16-006 - Simplification of the Vertebrate Animals Section of NIH Grant Applications and Contract Proposals (November 18, 2015) NOT-OD-16-011 - Implementing Rigor and Transparency in NIH & AHRQ Research Grant Applications (November 18, 2015) April 13, 2015 - Notice of Change to Funds Available and Award Budget for PAR-13-232. See Notice NOT-FD-15-005. April 3, 2015 - Notice of Change to Application Due Dates and Expiration Date for PAR-13-232. See Notice NOT-FD-15-004. August 21, 2013: Removed reference to ASSIST in section IV.3, since ASSIST is currently only available for multi-project applications. June 14, 2013 - See Notice NOT-FD-13-015. Notice of Change of Application Due Date(s). June 5, 2013 - See Notice NOT-FD-13-013. Notice of Change Application Due Date(s).
Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) Number	PAR-13-232
Companion Funding Opportunity	None
Number of Applications	See Section III. 3. Additional Information on Eligibility.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s)	93.103
Funding Opportunity Purpose	1) To support implementation of the National Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance System through sustainable multi-stakeholder partnership 2) To develop new epidemiologic methodologies or to apply existing methodologies in new ways to provide a comprehensive understanding of medical device performance and clinical outcomes associated with device use in real-world use settings; 3) To develop new systems of data collection and/or analysis to permit prospective active medical device postmarket risk identification , periodic systematic updates of comprehensive evidence syntheses, visual analytics, and other efforts to broadly apply complex methodology to diverse data sources that facilitates postmarket surveillance; 4) To develop methodological approaches and/or systems that facilitate the use of postmarket information for regulatory decision making throughout the entire device lifecycle ; and 5) To support the development of and access to high quality data sources that can be used in comprehensive postmarket evaluation of medical device performance and associated outcomes.

Posted Date	May 22, 2013
Open Date (Earliest Submission Date)	May 24, 2013
Letter of Intent Due Date(s)	Not Applicable
Application Due Date(s)	May 13, 2016 by 11:59 PM eastern Time. The original due date of April 29, 2016 is no longer valid. Applicants should be aware that on-time submission means that an application is submitted error free (of both Grants.gov and eRA Commons errors) by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on the application due date. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application by the due date. (New Date July 5, 2013 per NOT-FD-13-015), Previous Date(New Dates July 1, 2013, by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. April 30, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. per NOT-FD-13-013) Orignally June 24, 2013, by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. April 30, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. Applicants should be aware that on-time submission means that an application is submitted error free (of both Grants.gov and eRA Commons errors) by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the application due date. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow adequate time to make any corrections to errors found in the application during the submission process by the due date.
AIDS Application Due Date(s)	Not Applicable
Scientific Merit Review	July 2013, June 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
Advisory Council Review	August 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
Earliest Start Date	September 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
Expiration Date	New Date May 14, 2016 per issuance of NOT-FD-16-008. (Original Expiration Date: May 1, 2017) New Date April 29, 2017 per issuance of NOT-FD-15-004. (Original Expiration Date: May 1, 2017)
Due Dates for E.O. 12372	Not Applicable

Required Application Instructions

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, except where instructed to do otherwise (in this FOA or in a Notice from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts). Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the FOA) is required and strictly enforced. Applicants must read and follow all application instructions in the Application Guide as well as any program-specific instructions noted in Section IV. When the program-specific instructions deviate from those in the Application Guide, follow the program-specific instructions. Applications that do not comply with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.

Part 1. Overview Information
Part 2. Full Text of the Announcement
Section I. Funding Opportunity Description
Section II. Award Information
Section III. Eligibility Information
Section IV. Application and Submission Information
Section V. Application Review Information
Section VI. Award Administration Information
Section VII. Agency Contacts
Section VIII. Other Information

FDA's mission to protect and promote public health continues after the approval of a new medical product into the postmarket space where it is of vital importance to understand real-world use and associated outcomes. Proliferation of medical data systems has presented additional challenges and opportunities for an enhanced understanding of medical devices.

The medical device developmental and regulatory environment is substantially different from that of other medical products. While drugs enjoy a linear development process that includes an exhaustive preclinical and clinical evaluation prior to approval, medical device development and regulation is iterative by nature, which leads to the total product life cycle loop that guides the Center for Devices and Radiological Health. Further, exposure to a medical device can be as complex as a permanent implant to a surgical instrument, to an in vitro diagnostic that never comes into physical contact with a patient, but which plays an important role in guiding medical decision making. Identifying patient exposure to medical devices and relating it to clinical outcomes, especially low-frequency outcomes, is extremely difficult with current systems and methodology.

In September 2012, FDA released a report, "Strengthening Our National System for Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance." (http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/CentersOffices/OfficeofMedicalProductsandTobacco/CDRH/CDRHReports/ucm301912.htm). This report, recognizing the shared responsibility of postmarket surveillance, highlighted the need for FDA to work collaboratively with a broad array of stakeholders to develop the necessary systems and scientific methodology to facilitate a comprehensive, in-depth understanding of medical device use and associated health outcomes.

FDA Medical Device Epidemiology Network (MDEpiNet) initiative and its evolving partnership infrastructure and capabilities will be vital to the implementation of the National Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance System. http://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ScienceandResearch/EpidemiologyMedicalDevices/MedicalDeviceEpidemiologyNetworkMDEpiNet/default.htm.

The purpose of this FOA is to continue to facilitate development of the National Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance System, epidemiologic methodologies and scientific systems to facilitate a comprehensive understanding of medical device performance and clinical outcomes associated with medical device use.

Specifically, the aims of this FOA are:

1) To support the implementation of the National Medical Device Postmarket Surveillance System through sustainable multi-stakeholder partnerships.

2) To develop new epidemiologic methodologies or to apply methodologies in new ways to provide a comprehensive understanding of medical device performance in real-world use settings;

3) To develop new systems of data collection and/or analysis to permit prospective active medical device postmarket risk identification, medical device performance, periodic systematic updates of comprehensive evidence syntheses, visual analytics, and other similar efforts to broadly apply complex methodology to diverse data sources that facilitates postmarket surveillance;

4) To develop methodological approaches and/or systems that facilitate the use of postmarket information for regulatory decision making throughout the entire device lifecycle ; and

5) To support development of and access to high quality data sources that can be used in comprehensive postmarket evaluation of medical device performance and associated outcomes.

Awardees will also participate in the Medical Device Epidemiology Network (MDEpiNet), a broad-based public-private partnership that is designed to develop new methodologies, analysis systems, support pilot projects, and to provide opportunities for applying these to novel uses in different device areas. It is expected that the infrastructure and methodologies developed through this initiative will not only support FDA's postmarket surveillance program, but also provide important and timely information to patients, healthcare providers, insurers, and the medical device industry to advance medical device development and improve public health. Postmarket surveillance of medical products by its nature represents a data collection and analysis enterprise that involves and affects many stakeholders beyond FDA. Therefore, sustainability of this effort will necessitate intellectual and financial support from multiple sectors. Additionally, by leveraging the MDEpiNet partnership, it is expected that the advances developed as a result of this announcement will be applicable to a broad range of medical device areas and that this work will advance regulatory science to strengthen overall medical device lifecycle performance evaluation capabilities.

All applications developed to address this announcement should consider the following points:

1. Postmarket surveillance systems should be developed to support transparency such that patients, physicians, hospitals, insurers, medical device industry, and regulatory bodies will have access to and be able to repeat any given analysis;

2. Applications should include details regarding data access and availability to all stakeholders and partners, including FDA (for research purposes as well as for postmarket risk identification and monitoring);

3. While projects may focus on an individual high priority device area, the methods and systems developed should be capable of being applied more broadly across the medical device landscape;

4. The scientific plan for developing an analysis system should be accompanied by a plan or framework for establishing a sustainable partnership business infrastructure to allow for substantial national or international coverage over an extended period of time;

5. Postmarket surveillance is a resource-intensive enterprise. Methodology and analysis system development efforts should address use of existing data sources managed by a variety of public and private organizations;

6. Applications should include details on how patient privacy and data security will be established and maintained; and

7. Applications should incorporate use of unique device identifiers (UDI) to allow for adequate tracking and investigation into potential postmarket signals.

FDA's current priorities for epidemiology regulatory science research are available on the program website at: http://www.fda.gov/MDEpiNet.

Funding Instrument	Cooperative Agreement: A support mechanism used when there will be substantial Federal scientific or programmatic involvement. Substantial involvement means that, after award, FDA scientific or program staff will assist, guide, coordinate, or participate in project activities.
Application Types Allowed	New The OER Glossary and the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide provide details on these application types.
Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards	The anticipated number of awards is contingent upon FDA appropriations and the submission of a sufficient number of meritorious applications. Future year amounts will depend on annual appropriations, availability of funding and awardee performance. It is anticipated that any award(s) made will not exceed $3,000,000 in total costs (direct plus indirect), per year, per award.
Award Budget	Application budgets need to reflect the actual needs of the proposed project and should not exceed the following in total costs (direct plus indirect). Year 01: $3,000,000 Year 02: $3,000,000 Year 03: $3,000,000 Year 04: $3,000,000 Year 05: $3,000,000 Funding will be provided for one year, with the possibility of up to four years of additional support. Future year amounts will depend on annual appropriations, availability of funding and awardee performance.
Award Project Period	Awards in support of projects will be made for a project period commensurate with the time involved in planning and conducting the project. Typically, this will be one year. Applicants may propose a multi-year project period, up to 5 years. The availability of funding for subsequent years of multi-year project periods depends on annual appropriations and grantee performance.

FDA grants policies as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made in response to this FOA.

Higher Education Institutions

• Public/State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
• Private Institutions of Higher Education

The following types of Higher Education Institutions are always encouraged to apply for FDA support as Public or Private Institutions of Higher Education:

• Hispanic-serving Institutions
• Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
• Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs)
• Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions
• Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs)

Nonprofits Other Than Institutions of Higher Education

• Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Higher Education)
• Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) IRS Status (Other than Institutions of Higher Education)

For-Profit Organizations

• Small Businesses
• For-Profit Organizations (Other than Small Businesses)

Governments

• State Governments
• County Governments
• City or Township Governments
• Special District Governments
• Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Federally Recognized)
• Indian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized)
• Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government
• U.S. Territory or Possession

Other

• Independent School Districts
• Public Housing Authorities/Indian Housing Authorities
• Native American Tribal Organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
• Faith-based or Community-based Organizations
• Regional Organizations
• Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions)

Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions) are eligible to apply.
Non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. Organizations are eligible to apply.

Foreign components, as defined in the HHS Grants Policy Statement, are allowed.

Applicant Organizations

Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the SF 424 (R&R) Application Guide to be eligible to apply for or receive an award. All registrations must be completed prior to the application being submitted. Registration can take 6 weeks or more, so applicants should begin the registration process as soon as possible. Failure to complete registrations in advance of a due date is not a valid reason for a late submission.

• Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (DUNS) - All registrations require that applicants be issued a DUNS number. After obtaining a DUNS number, applicants can begin both SAM and eRA Commons registrations. The same DUNS number must be used for all registrations, as well as on the grant application.
• System for Award Management (SAM) (formerly CCR) Applicants must complete and maintain an active registration, which requires renewal at least annually. The renewal process may require as much time as the initial registration. SAM registration includes the assignment of a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) Code for domestic organizations which have not already been assigned a CAGE Code.
• NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code Foreign organizations must obtain an NCAGE code (in lieu of a CAGE code) in order to register in SAM.
• eRA Commons - Applicants must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the eRA Commons registration. Organizations can register with the eRA Commons as they are working through their SAM or Grants.gov registration. eRA Commons requires organizations to identify at least one Signing Official (SO) and at least one Program Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) account in order to submit an application.
• Grants.gov Applicants must have an active DUNS number and SAM registration in order to complete the Grants.gov registration.

For additional guidance on how to apply electronically please go to: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/ElectronicReceipt/index.htm

Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PDs/PIs)

All PDs/PIs must have an eRA Commons account and should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate an existing account with the applicant organization’s eRA Commons account. If the PD/PI is also the organizational Signing Official, they must have two distinct eRA Commons accounts, one for each role. Obtaining an eRA Commons account can take up to 2 weeks.

Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PD(s)/PI(s)) is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for FDA support.

For institutions/organizations proposing multiple PDs/PIs, visit the Multiple Program Director/Principal Investigator Policy and submission details in the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Component of the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

This FOA does not require cost sharing as defined in the HHS Grants Policy Statement. However, any level of cost sharing proposed by the applicant will be considered in the objective review process and will be a preference factor.

Applicant organizations may submit more than one application, provided that each application is scientifically distinct.

FDA will not accept any application that is essentially the same as one already reviewed within the past twelve months, except for submission:

• To an RFA of an application that was submitted previously as an investigator-initiated application but not paid;
• Of an investigator-initiated application that was originally submitted to an RFA but not paid; or
• Of an application with a changed grant activity code.

Applicants must download the SF424 (R&R) application package associated with this funding opportunity using the Apply for Grant Electronically button in this FOA or following the directions provided at Grants.gov.

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, except where instructed in this funding opportunity announcement to do otherwise. Conformance to the requirements in the Application Guide is required and strictly enforced. Applications that are out of compliance with these instructions may be delayed or not accepted for review.

For information on Application Submission and Receipt, visit Frequently Asked Questions Application Guide, Electronic Submission of Grant Applications.

All page limitations described in the SF424 Application Guide must be followed, with the following exceptions or additional requirements:

• For this specific FOA, the Research Strategy section is limited to 15 pages.

The forms package associated with this FOA includes all applicable components, required and optional. Please note that some components marked optional in the application package are required for submission of applications for this FOA. Follow all instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide to ensure you complete all appropriate optional components.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

• If an applicant is requesting indirect costs as part of their budget, a copy of the most recent Federal indirect cost rate or F&A agreement must be provided as part of the application submission. This agreement should be attached to the RESEARCH & RELATED Other Project Information Component as line #12 'Other Attachments'.
• Applications requesting multiple years of support must complete and submit a separate detailed budget breakdown and narrative justification for each year of financial support requested.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed.

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed,

All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

Resource Sharing Plan: Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans (Data Sharing Plan, Sharing Model Organisms, and Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS)) as provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, with the following modifications:

• All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, should address a Data Sharing Plan.

Appendix: Do not use the Appendix to circumvent page limits. Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

Foreign (non-U.S.) institutions must follow policies described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement, and procedures for foreign institutions described throughout the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

Part I. Overview Information contains information about Key Dates. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications before the due date to ensure they have time to make any application corrections that might be necessary for successful submission.

Organizations must submit applications to Grants.gov, the online portal to find and apply for grants across all Federal agencies. Applicants must then complete the submission process by tracking the status of the application in the eRA Commons, FDA’s electronic system for grants administration. eRA Commons and Grants.gov systems check the application against many of the application instructions upon submission. Errors must be corrected and a changed/corrected application must be submitted to Grants.gov on or before the application due date. If a Changed/Corrected application is submitted after the deadline, the application will be considered late. Late applications will not be accepted for this announcement.

Applicants are responsible for viewing their application before the due date in the eRA Commons to ensure accurate and successful submission.

Information on the submission process and a definition of on-time submission are provided in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review.

All FDA awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

Pre-award costs are allowable only as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide. Paper applications will not be accepted.

Applicants must complete all required registrations before the application due date. Section III. Eligibility Information contains information about registration.

For assistance with your electronic application or for more information on the electronic submission process, visit Applying Electronically.

Important reminders:
All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile Component of the SF424(R&R) Application Package. Failure to register in the Commons and to include a valid PD/PI Commons ID in the credential field will prevent the successful submission of an electronic application to FDA. See Section III of this FOA for information on registration requirements.

The applicant organization must ensure that the DUNS number it provides on the application is the same number used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the System for Award Management. Additional information may be found in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide.

See more tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness by the assigned Grants Management Specialist and responsiveness by FDA/CDRH. Applications that are incomplete and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.

Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in NOT-OD-10-115.

Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process. As part of the FDA mission, all applications submitted to the FDA in support of biomedical and behavioral research are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the FDA objective review process.

Reviewers will provide an overall impact score to reflect their assessment of the likelihood for the project to exert a sustained, powerful influence on the research field(s) involved, in consideration of the following review criteria and additional review criteria (as applicable for the project proposed).

Reviewers will consider each of the review criteria below in the determination of scientific merit, and give a separate score for each. An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have major scientific impact. For example, a project that by its nature is not innovative may be essential to advance a field.

Significance

Does the project address an important problem or a critical barrier to progress in the field? If the aims of the project are achieved, how will scientific knowledge, technical capability, and/or clinical practice be improved? How will successful completion of the aims change the concepts, methods, technologies, treatments, services, or preventative interventions that drive this field?

Investigator(s)

Are the PD(s)/PI(s), collaborators, and other researchers well suited to the project? If Early Stage Investigators or New Investigators, or in the early stages of independent careers, do they have appropriate experience and training? If established, have they demonstrated an ongoing record of accomplishments that have advanced their field(s)? If the project is collaborative or multi-PD/PI, do the investigators have complementary and integrated expertise; are their leadership approach, governance and organizational structure appropriate for the project?

Innovation

Does the application challenge and seek to shift current research or clinical practice paradigms by utilizing novel theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions? Are the concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions novel to one field of research or novel in a broad sense? Is a refinement, improvement, or new application of theoretical concepts, approaches or methodologies, instrumentation, or interventions proposed?

Approach

Are the overall strategy, methodology, and analyses well-reasoned and appropriate to accomplish the specific aims of the project? Are potential problems, alternative strategies, and benchmarks for success presented? If the project is in the early stages of development, will the strategy establish feasibility and will particularly risky aspects be managed?

If the project involves clinical research, are the plans for 1) protection of human subjects from research risks, and 2) inclusion of minorities and members of both sexes/genders, as well as the inclusion of children, justified in terms of the scientific goals and research strategy proposed?

Environment

Will the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success? Are the institutional support, equipment and other physical resources available to the investigators adequate for the project proposed? Will the project benefit from unique features of the scientific environment, subject populations, or collaborative arrangements?

As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will evaluate the following additional items while determining scientific and technical merit, and in providing an overall impact score, but will not give separate scores for these items.

Protections for Human Subjects

For research that involves human subjects but does not involve one of the six categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, the committee will evaluate the justification for involvement of human subjects and the proposed protections from research risk relating to their participation according to the following five review criteria: 1) risk to subjects, 2) adequacy of protection against risks, 3) potential benefits to the subjects and others, 4) importance of the knowledge to be gained, and 5) data and safety monitoring for clinical trials.

For research that involves human subjects and meets the criteria for one or more of the six categories of research that are exempt under 45 CFR Part 46, the committee will evaluate: 1) the justification for the exemption, 2) human subjects involvement and characteristics, and 3) sources of materials. For additional information on review of the Human Subjects section, please refer to the Human Subjects Protection and Inclusion Guidelines.

Inclusion of Women, Minorities, and Children

When the proposed project involves clinical research, the committee will evaluate the proposed plans for inclusion of minorities and members of both genders, as well as the inclusion of children. For additional information on review of the Inclusion section, please refer to the Human Subjects Protection and Inclusion Guidelines.

Vertebrate Animals

The committee will evaluate the involvement of live vertebrate animals as part of the scientific assessment according to the following five points: 1) proposed use of the animals, and species, strains, ages, sex, and numbers to be used; 2) justifications for the use of animals and for the appropriateness of the species and numbers proposed; 3) adequacy of veterinary care; 4) procedures for limiting discomfort, distress, pain and injury to that which is unavoidable in the conduct of scientifically sound research including the use of analgesic, anesthetic, and tranquilizing drugs and/or comfortable restraining devices; and 5) methods of euthanasia and reason for selection if not consistent with the AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia. For additional information on review of the Vertebrate Animals section, please refer to the Worksheet for Review of the Vertebrate Animal Section.

Biohazards

Reviewers will assess whether materials or procedures proposed are potentially hazardous to research personnel and/or the environment, and if needed, determine whether adequate protection is proposed.

Resubmissions

Not Applicable

Renewals

Not Applicable

Revisions

Not Applicable

As applicable for the project proposed, reviewers will consider each of the following items, but will not give scores for these items, and should not consider them in providing an overall impact score.

Applications from Foreign Organizations

Reviewers will assess whether the project presents special opportunities for furthering research programs through the use of unusual talent, resources, populations, or environmental conditions that exist in other countries and either are not readily available in the United States or augment existing U.S. resources.

Select Agent Research

Reviewers will assess the information provided in this section of the application, including 1) the Select Agent(s) to be used in the proposed research, 2) the registration status of all entities where Select Agent(s) will be used, 3) the procedures that will be used to monitor possession use and transfer of Select Agent(s), and 4) plans for appropriate biosafety, biocontainment, and security of the Select Agent(s).

Resource Sharing Plans

Reviewers will comment on whether the following Resource Sharing Plans, or the rationale for not sharing the following types of resources, are reasonable: 1) Data Sharing Plan; 2) Sharing Model Organisms; and 3) Genome Wide Association Studies (GWAS).

Budget and Period of Support

Reviewers will consider whether the budget and the requested period of support are fully justified and reasonable in relation to the proposed research. Does the amount requested from FDA appear reasonable as partial support of the total work plan, facilities, staff, etc.? Is the budget organized, reasonable, and clearly stated? Does the budget account for the proposed work plan? Are indirect costs justified and reasonable in relation to the proposed work plan? Is there a cost sharing plan proposed? If a plan is proposed, is it a fixed percentage/amount, a minimum percentage/amount, or a graduated percentage/amount? Is it negotiable?

All applications determined to be complete and responsive will undergo an objective review process. An objective review panel will evaluate complete and responsive applications according to the criteria listed in the Scored Review Criteria section above.

As part of the objective review, all applications:

• Will receive a written critique.

Appeals of initial objective review will not be accepted for applications submitted in response to this FOA.

Applications will be ranked on the basis of their Composite Score and will compete for available funds with all other recommended applications. Following the objective review, recommended applications will receive a second level of review by the National Cancer Advisory Board. The following will be considered in making funding decisions:

• Scientific and technical merit of the proposed project as determined by objective review.
• Availability of funds.
• Relevance of the proposed project to program priorities.

Information regarding the disposition of applications is available in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

If the application is under consideration for funding, FDA will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

A formal notification in the form of a Notice of Award (NoA) will be provided to the applicant organization for successful applications. The NoA signed by the grants management officer is the authorizing document and will be sent via email to the grantee’s business official.

Awardees must comply with any funding restrictions described in Section IV.5. Funding Restrictions. Selection of an application for award is not an authorization to begin performance. Any costs incurred before receipt of the NoA are at the recipient's risk. These costs may be reimbursed only to the extent considered allowable pre-award costs.

Any application awarded in response to this FOA will be subject to the DUNS, SAM Registration, and Transparency Act requirements as noted in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

All FDA grant and cooperative agreement awards include the HHS Grants Policy Statement as part of the NoA.

Additional terms and conditions regarding FDA regulatory and Programmatic requirements may be part of the Notice of Award.

Cooperative Agreement Terms and Conditions of Award

The following special terms of award are in addition to, and not in lieu of, otherwise applicable U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) administrative guidelines, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) grant administration regulations at 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92 (Part 92 is applicable when State and local Governments are eligible to apply), and other HHS, PHS, and FDA grant administration policies.

The administrative and funding instrument used for this program will be the cooperative agreement, an "assistance" mechanism (rather than an "acquisition" mechanism), in which substantial FDA programmatic involvement with the awardees is anticipated during the performance of the activities. Under the cooperative agreement, the FDA purpose is to support and stimulate the recipients' activities by involvement in and otherwise working jointly with the award recipients in a partnership role; it is not to assume direction, prime responsibility, or a dominant role in the activities. Consistent with this concept, the dominant role and prime responsibility resides with the awardees for the project as a whole, although specific tasks and activities may be shared among the awardees and the FDA as defined below.

The PD(s)/PI(s) will have the primary responsibility for and dominant role in:

• Planning, directing, and executing the proposed project, with the FDA staff being substantially involved as a partner with the PI.
• Awardees will retain custody of and have primary rights to the data and software developed under these awards, subject to Government rights of access consistent with current DHHS, PHS, and FDA policies.

FDA staff have substantial programmatic involvement that is above and beyond the normal stewardship role in awards, as described below:

• An FDA Project Scientist will have substantial programmatic involvement that is above and beyond the normal stewardship role in awards, as described below:
  
  The Project Scientist will monitor the project-related activities of the grantee periodically. The monitoring may be in the form of telephone conversations, emails, or written correspondence between the Project Scientist and the PD/PI. Periodic site visits with the PD/PI and other officials of the grantee organization may also occur. The results of these monitoring activities will be recorded in the official grant file and will be available to the grantee upon request, consistent with applicable disclosure statutes and with FDA disclosure regulations. Also, the grantee organization must comply with all special terms and conditions of the grant, including those that state that future funding will depend on recommendations from the Project Scientist. In addition,
  
  a. FDA will have prior approval of the appointment of all key administrative and scientific personnel proposed by the grantee.
  
  b. FDA will be directly involved in the guidance and development of the program.
  
  c. The FDA Project Scientist will participate, with the grantee, in determining and carrying out scientific and technical activities. Collaboration will also include data analysis, interpretation of findings and, where appropriate, co-authorship of publications.
  
  
• Additionally, an agency program official or Center program director will be responsible for the normal scientific and programmatic stewardship of the award and will be named in the award notice.

Areas of Joint Responsibility include:

• Parties will have equal representation on all steering, project, scientific, and other committees formed to discuss only the work performed under this agreement. This representation will include equal voting rights on projects and processes directly related to work carried out under this agreement.
• Parties will act in good faith to recruit, develop, and maintain committee membership to include stakeholders representing sectors affected by the work performed under this agreement, e.g. academic investigators, medical device industry, healthcare providers, health care delivery organizations, professional organizations, and patient organizations, who can provide scientific input that may improve the outcomes of the work performed under this agreement. These additional members may have voting rights, where appropriate according to written governance documents developed under this agreement.

When multiple years are involved, awardees will be required to submit the annual Non-Competing Progress Report (PHS 2590 or RPPR) and financial statements as required in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

A final progress report, invention statement, and the expenditure data portion of the Federal Financial Report are required for closeout of an award, as described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act), includes a requirement for awardees of Federal grants to report information about first-tier subawards and executive compensation under Federal assistance awards issued in FY2011 or later. All awardees of applicable FDA grants and cooperative agreements are required to report to the Federal Subaward Reporting System (FSRS) available at www.fsrs.gov on all subawards over $25,000. See the HHS Grants Policy Statement for additional information on this reporting requirement.

We encourage inquiries concerning this funding opportunity and welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants.

eRA Service Desk (Questions regarding ASSIST, eRA Commons registration, submitting and tracking an application, documenting system problems that threaten submission by the due date, post submission issues)
Telephone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free)

Web ticketing system: https://public.era.nih.gov/commonshelp
TTY: 301-451-5939
Email: [email protected]

Grants.gov Customer Support (Questions regarding Grants.gov registration and submission, downloading forms and application packages)
Contact Center Telephone: 800-518-4726

Web ticketing system: https://grants-portal.psc.gov/ContactUs.aspx
Email: [email protected]

GrantsInfo (Questions regarding application instructions and process, finding NIH grant resources)
Telephone: 301-710-0267
TTY 301-451-5936
Email: [email protected]

Danica Marinac-Dabic, MD, PhD
Director, Division of Epidemiology
Center for Devices and Radiological Health
Telephone: 301-796-6689
Email: [email protected]

Benjamin Eloff
Center for Devices and Radiological Health(CDRH)
Telephone: 301-796-8528
Email: [email protected]

Lisa Ko
Food and Drug Administration
Office of Acquisition & Grants Services (OAGS)
Telephone: 301-827-5095
Email: [email protected]

Lisa Ko
Food and Drug Administration
Office of Acquisition & Grants Services (OAGS)
Telephone: 301-827-5095
Email: [email protected]

All awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

Awards are made under the authorization of Section 301 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR Part 52 and 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92.