Part 1. Overview Information

Key Dates

All applications are due by 5:00 PM local time of applicant organization. 

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.

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Research (R) Instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide, except where instructed to do otherwise (in this NOFO or in a Notice from NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts).

Conformance to all requirements (both in the Application Guide and the NOFO) 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.

There are several options available to submit your application through Grants.gov to NIH and Department of Health and Human Services partners. You must use one of these submission options to access the application forms for this opportunity.

1. Use the NIH ASSIST system to prepare, submit and track your application online.
2. Use an institutional system-to-system (S2S) solution to prepare and submit your application to Grants.gov and eRA Commons to track your application. Check with your institutional officials regarding availability.
   
   
3. Use Grants.gov Workspace to prepare and submit your application and eRA Commons to track your application.



Table of Contents
Part 1. Overview Information
Key Dates
Part 2. Full Text of Announcement
Section I. Notice of 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

Part 2. Full Text of Announcement

Section I. Notice of Funding Opportunity Description

Background

Over 40 million people in the United States have a substance use disorder (SUD). Drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death, with an estimated 105,000 deaths in 2023. Deaths involving synthetic opioids other than methadone (primarily fentanyl), amphetamine-type psychostimulants (primarily methamphetamine), and cocaine were estimated to be 71%, 33%, and 27%, respectively. Furthermore, 48% of the 2022 overdose deaths were attributed to a synthetic opioid and another non-opioid substance (i.e., polysubstance overdose). Thus, there is an urgent need to develop safe and effective interventions to prevent and treat SUDs and overdose. These needed interventions include medications, digital therapeutics (DTx), device-based treatments, and behavioral interventions.

Research Focus

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) seeks preclinical and clinical research studies that will have high impact and quickly yield the necessary results to advance candidate interventions to prevent or treat SUDs and overdose closer to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval/authorization/clearance and/or implementation into clinical practice and community care.

There is particular interest in the development of therapeutic interventions for:

• Prevention of initiation of SUDs
• Prevention of progression of the severity of SUDs
• Reduction of the dose of opioids analgesics
• Improvement of SUD treatment adherence
• Facilitation of substance use discontinuation 
• Treatment of drug withdrawal signs and symptoms
• Treatment of neonatal drug withdrawal
• Treatment of co-morbid SUDs
• Reduction of lethality of overdose
• Reduction of overdose relapse
• Reduction of the risk of substance-induced respiratory depression
• Any other behavioral and medical manifestations or consequences of SUDs or overdose
• Single or multiple comorbid SUDs
• Populations at high risk for SUDs

Because the development of SUD interventions is likely to be high risk, UG3/UH3 grant applications must provide clear milestones to be accomplished at the end of the UG3 phase. Objective milestones of success and go/no-go rules for medications development progression are required, and both must have quantitative criteria associated with them.

Pharmacotherapies

Advances in the understanding of SUDs and overdose provide new opportunities to improve the treatment and prevention of these disorders and may ultimately contribute to reducing the current SUD and overdose crises. Some of these advances include the new findings of receptors, neurotransmitters, neuromodulators, and brain circuits associated with these disorders. These advances have led to a greater understanding of endogenous systems and well as risk/protective factors for the onset and progression of SUDs. Application of these findings has led to new targets, formulations, and delivery systems to be evaluated. Therefore, multiple therapeutic approaches may be poised for the next step in the FDA approval process and concerted efforts are needed to advance these potential pharmacotherapies to approval.

Applications may focus on studying new chemical entities (NCEs), medications already marketed for other indications, biologics, natural products, or combinations of medications.

Topics that are considered to be within the scope of this NOFO include, but are not limited to:

• Evaluation of NCEs at a preclinical or late preclinical IND-enabling stage;
• Early clinical evaluation of drug candidate at early clinical development stages: first-in-human, single ascending dose/multiple ascending dose, pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics, drug-drug interaction studies, translational clinical studies in patient populations, testing the target for safety and early evidence of efficacy  to de-risk further clinical development;
• Repurposing of marketed medications that are used for a non-SUD indication can include: preclinical and clinical safety evaluation (drug-drug interaction studies with the target SUD drug of use/misuse); clinical translational studies in early phase of clinical development, and/or proof-of-concept study assessing the pharmacologically best dose/dosing strategy, efficacy, and safety endpoints for the drug in preparation for phase III;
• Phase II and Phase III clinical stage drug candidates can include clinical development plans with the preparations for an end of phase II meeting with the FDA and phase III development program studies layout, where, if needed, the FDA feedback could be incorporated.

Device-Based Treatments

With the approval of neuromodulatory devices for treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and tobacco smoking cessation, interest has rapidly grown around applying these and related technologies to all SUDs. These technologies include, but are not limited to, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial direct current stimulation, vagal stimulation, deep-brain stimulation, focused ultrasound, and others. Also of interest are technologies that may not directly modify neuronal function but report on or alter neurophysiology that affect outcomes. This NOFO strongly encourages the testing of device-based interventions for SUDs. The main goal is to advance the development of neuromodulatory devices in the FDA approval pathway.

Studies are strongly encouraged, when appropriate, to include evaluation of circuit-directed target engagement, using on-line (e.g., TMS/fMRI interleaving, EEG, PET) or off-line (e.g., PET, fMRI/rsfcMRI, MRS) approaches, depending on the nature of the spatial anatomical and/or neural oscillatory targets. Careful attention should be paid to the time-course of action. For rapidly acting interventions, where changes in circuit-based targets occur acutely during administration, it may be most appropriate to use pharmacodynamic outcome measures (e.g. neurocognitive task performance, craving).

Sham/placebo stimulus comparators should be included when appropriate. If a sham is used, demonstration must be provided not only of adequate masking procedures but also lack of biological action that would exert central nervous system effects.

For studies requiring an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE), applicants are expected to provide confirmation of an existing IDE, or describe the status of any such pending regulatory submissions. If an IDE application is not submitted by the time of the grant application submission, the applicant is expected to describe the plan and timeline for submitting the request and obtaining the IDE prior to the initiation of a grant award. If the device is exempt from the IDE, the grant application is expected to include the justification and documentation for why the device would be exempt.

Digital Therapeutics (DTx)

DTx are mobile, web, or other software-based platforms designed to make diagnostic or therapeutic claims (i.e., prevent, manage, or treat medical conditions or diseases). These therapeutic interventions do not include wellness apps or telehealth which provides remote access to a clinician. Instead, DTx can deliver new behavioral interventions or those that have previously only been available for delivery through direct, face-to-face interactions with a clinician. DTx can provide therapeutic opportunities beyond those that are available under current standard of SUD care. For example, the delivery of a behavioral intervention by DTx ensures it is provided in a highly reproducible manner. Access is not affected by transportation challenges to a clinician, or by when a patient might have the time available to visit a clinician. Privacy can be ensured by providing discreet and confidential care, avoiding the challenges of stigma around the potential for public exposure of receiving treatment. DTx can be highly scalable, increasing access at low cost. Over the last several years, the FDA has provided a pathway for authorization of DTx and there already has been approval of DTx for SUD. However, more work is needed to expand on the types of treatments delivered, the technologies used for delivery, that target special populations or specific SUDs, or other aspects that can increase the efficacy and reach of treatment using DTx.

Investigators are strongly encouraged to reach out to the appropriate FDA Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) office via the Pre-Submission process to discuss the proposed development pathway and clinical validation data requirements. Guidance on this process can be found here: Q Submission Process. Questions for discussion in a Pre-Submission could include: whether a DTx would meet the definition of a medical device and require FDA oversight; the most appropriate regulatory pathway for a DTx if it does meet the definition of a medical device; whether a clinical trial investigating the safety and effectiveness of an investigational DTx would represent a significant risk study and require prior IDE approval. Additional discussions can include clinical study design considerations (including feedback on the proposed patient population, study endpoints and assessments, statistical analysis plan, study comparator, and others) to support the safety and effectiveness of the DTx for a particular use indication.

Sham comparators or validated active comparators should be included when appropriate. If applicable, investigators should design studies to evaluate potential sex differences. Methods to evaluate subjects' compliance with the study treatments should be included when possible. Monitoring adherence to the treatment would be especially appropriate for DTx that are integrated with FDA-approved SUD interventions.

Behavioral Interventions

Behavioral treatments play a critical role in most evidence-based SUD interventions and often constitute the entire treatment. This UG3/UH3 is intended to support behavioral and integrative intervention research with the goal to advance science, including treatments that are intended to be more efficient, better tailored to individuals, or more readily transported to the community.

The objective of this announcement is to ensure sufficient emphasis and support for Stages I through III of behavioral and integrative treatment research. Studies will support translation of scientific knowledge into more efficient behavioral, combined behavioral and pharmacological, combined behavioral and neuromodulatory, integrative, and complementary treatments so that they ultimately can be effectively scaled.

The NIH Stage Model describes behavioral intervention development in six stages: basic science (Stage 0); intervention generation, refinement, modification, and adaptation and pilot testing (Stage I); traditional efficacy testing (Stage II); efficacy testing with real-world providers (Stage III); effectiveness research (Stage IV); dissemination and implementation research (Stage V). Under this NOFO, only stages I, II and III are supported. Intervention development within each stage should be viewed as iterative, recursive, and bidirectional.

Stage I: Stage I research is iterative and may involve: 1) identifying promising basic or clinical scientific findings relevant to the development or refinement of an intervention; 2) generating/ formulating theories relevant to intervention development and putative change mechanisms; 3) operationally defining, and standardizing new or modified principle-driven interventions; 4) initial or pilot testing of the intervention; 5) experimentally testing the mechanisms and principles of behavior change of the intervention; and 6) as necessary, further refining the intervention.

The Stage Model presumes that intervention development is incomplete if no materials and methods are available to ensure faithful administration of an intervention. Therefore, therapist/provider training and fidelity assessment and enhancement methods are an integral part of behavioral intervention development.

Stage II: Stage II research consists of testing promising behavioral interventions in research settings, with research therapists/providers while maintaining a high level of control necessary to establish internal validity. This treatment stage also involves examining mechanisms of behavior change. Stage II does not specify a particular research design. Testing of interventions may be done in randomized clinical trials, but may also be conducted using other methodologies as appropriate (e.g., adaptive designs, multiple baseline single-case designs, A-B-A designs, etc.). Stage II studies may include exploration of intervention components, dose-response, and theory-derived moderators.

Information obtained from Stage II studies may be used to inform future Stage I studies. For example, if it is shown that an intervention works for some people, but not for others, especially if such a moderator effect makes conceptual sense, a Stage II study may lay the groundwork for a Stage I application aimed at developing an intervention (or modifying the intervention) for people who were unresponsive to the initial intervention.

Stage III: Stage III research determines efficacy in community settings and with community therapists/providers. Although Stage III occurs in real-world settings, investigators should maintain a high level of control to establish internal validity. Proceeding directly from Stage I to Stage III requires Stage I research to be promising and requires the existence of methods to ensure fidelity of delivery of an intervention, along with therapist training materials (as required by the intervention).

Applications Not Responsive to this NOFO

The following types of studies are not responsive to this NOFO and will not be reviewed:

• Applications focusing solely on novel target identification/validation, generation of new animal models, development/testing of new human laboratory models
• Applications focusing on mechanistic studies of the neurobiology of addiction
• Applications that address alcohol as the only substance of use
• Applications related to behavioral interventions in stages IV, V, or VI
• Applications focusing on effectiveness research

Applicants should consult with NIDA staff when developing plans for an application (see Agency Contacts, Section VII). This early contact will provide an opportunity to clarify NIDA policies and guidelines, identify whether the proposed project is consistent with NIDA program priorities, and discuss how to develop an appropriate project timeline, which is subject to peer review.

Special Considerations

NIDA applicants are strongly encouraged to review the guidelines and adhere to the requirements applicable to their research listed in the Special Considerations for NIDA Funding Opportunities and Awards. Upon award, these considerations will be included in the Notice of Grant Award.

Investigators proposing NIH-defined clinical trials may refer to the Research Methods Resources website for information about developing statistical methods and study designs.

See Section VIII. Other Information for award authorities and regulations.

Section II. Award Information

NIH grants policies as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement will apply to the applications submitted and awards made from this NOFO.

Section III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

Higher Education Institutions - Includes all types

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

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)

Local 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).

Federal Governments

• 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 Organizations)

Foreign Organizations/ International Collaborations

NIH will no longer issue awards (new, renewal, or non-competing continuation) to domestic or foreign entities that involve foreign subawards/subcontracts. All NIH-funded research involving foreign subawards/subcontracts must be submitted in response to a NOFO that is specifically designated for funded international collaborations. This new requirement was effective, May 1, 2025.

Applications involving foreign subawards/subcontracts submitted in response to this NOFO will be deemed noncompliant and will not be considered for funding. This policy applies to all monetary international collaborations resulting in foreign subawards/subcontracts, however, it does not preclude unfunded international collaborations or foreign components, funding for foreign consultants, or procurement of unique equipment or supplies from foreign vendors.

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

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

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

Applicant Organizations

Applicant organizations must complete and maintain the following registrations as described in the How to Apply- 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, please reference the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 2.3.9.2 Electronically Submitted Applications for additional information.

• System for Award Management (SAM) – 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.
  • Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) - A UEI is issued as part of the SAM.gov registration process. The same UEI must be used for all registrations, as well as on the grant application.
• eRA Commons - Once the unique organization identifier is established, organizations can register with eRA Commons in tandem with completing their Grants.gov registrations; all registrations must be in place by time of submission. 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 SAM registration in order to complete the Grants.gov registration.

Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s))

All PD(s)/PI(s) must have an eRA Commons account.  PD(s)/PI(s) should work with their organizational officials to either create a new account or to affiliate their existing account with the applicant organization in eRA Commons. 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 their organization to develop an application for 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 How to Apply-Application Guide.

2. Cost Sharing

This NOFO does not require cost sharing as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 1.2 Definition of Terms.

3. Additional Information on Eligibility

Number of Applications

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

The NIH will not accept duplicate or highly overlapping applications under review at the same time, per NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 2.3.7.4 Submission of Resubmission Application. This means that the NIH will not accept:

• A new (A0) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of an overlapping new (A0) or resubmission (A1) application.
• A resubmission (A1) application that is submitted before issuance of the summary statement from the review of the previous new (A0) application.
• An application that has substantial overlap with another application pending appeal of initial peer review (see NIH Grants Policy Statement 2.3.9.4 Similar, Essentially Identical, or Identical Applications).

Section IV. Application and Submission Information

1. Requesting an Application Package

The application forms package specific to this opportunity must be accessed through ASSIST, Grants.gov Workspace or an institutional system-to-system solution. Links to apply using ASSIST or Grants.gov Workspace are available in Part 1 of this NOFO. See your administrative office for instructions if you plan to use an institutional system-to-system solution.

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

It is critical that applicants follow the instructions in the Research (R) Instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide except where instructed in this notice of funding opportunity 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.

Page Limitations

All page limitations described in the How to Apply- Application Guide and the Table of Page Limits must be followed.

The following section supplements the instructions found in the How to Apply- Application Guide and should be used for preparing an application to this NOFO.

SF424(R&R) Cover

All instructions in the How to Apply - Application Guide must be followed.

SF424(R&R) Project/Performance Site Locations

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

SF424(R&R) Other Project Information

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

Other Attachments:

Target Product Profile (Optional):

Applicants may include a target product profile for therapeutic candidates. This may not exceed one page in length.

Interactions with FDA (Optional):

Applications may include a summary of interactions with FDA, which may not to exceed two pages in length.

Applications exceeding the above page limitations or including other information in these attachments, will be withdrawn without review.

SF424(R&R) Senior/Key Person Profile

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

R&R Budget

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

R&R Subaward Budget

All instructions in the How to Apply-Application Guide must be followed.

PHS 398 Cover Page Supplement

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

PHS 398 Research Plan

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

Research Strategy:

Without duplicating the information provided in Section 2.7 Study Timeline from PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information Form of the How to Apply - Application Guide, include a study timeline that relates to the anticipated completion of Aims and/or milestones. 

Applications must provide a decision tree for the compound testing, with appropriate go/no-go decision points. They must also provide the entry and exit points of the proposed compound in the FDA's medications development continuum, if applicable.

All clinical trial applications must include methods to evaluate subjects' compliance with the study medications.

If applicable, investigators must include male and female samples and data analysis to evaluate potential sex differences. When samples or analysis are not proposed, scientific justification must be provided.

For studies requiring an IDE, applicants are expected to provide confirmation of an existing IDE, or describe the status of any such pending regulatory submissions. If an IDE application is not submitted by the time of the grant application submission, the applicant is expected to describe the plan and timeline for submitting the request and obtaining the IDE prior to the initiation of a grant award. If the device is exempt from the IDE, the grant application is expected to include the justification and documentation for why the device would be exempt.

Milestones and UG3/UH3 Transition: Applicants must plan and submit the application for both a UG3 and a UH3 phases. The section describing the research to be conducted under the UG3 must include a description of an entry point and the milestone(s) that will be reached at the end of this phase. To successfully transition to the UH3 phase, the project must reach the milestones outlined in the application. The application must provide quantifiable metrics to determine success of the UG3. Additional milestone(s) may be negotiated before or after funding decisions have been made.

Resource Sharing Plan: Individuals are required to comply with the instructions for the Resource Sharing Plans as provided in the How to Apply- Application Guide.

Other Plan(s): 

All instructions in the How to Apply-Application Guide must be followed, with the following additional instructions:

• All applicants planning research (funded or conducted in whole or in part by NIH) that results in the generation of scientific data are required to comply with the instructions for the Data Management and Sharing Plan. All applications, regardless of the amount of direct costs requested for any one year, must address a Data Management and Sharing Plan.

Appendix: Only limited Appendix materials are allowed. Follow all instructions for the Appendix as described in the How to Apply- Application Guide.

• No publications or other material, with the exception of blank questionnaires or blank surveys, may be included in the Appendix.

PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information

When involving human subjects research, clinical research, and/or NIH-defined clinical trials (and when applicable, clinical trials research experience) follow all instructions for the PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form in the How to Apply- Application Guide, with the following additional instructions:

If you answered “Yes” to the question “Are Human Subjects Involved?” on the R&R Other Project Information form, you must include at least one human subjects study record using the Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information form or Delayed Onset Study record.

Study Record: PHS Human Subjects and Clinical Trials Information

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

Delayed Onset Study

Note: Delayed onset does NOT apply to a study that can be described but will not start immediately (i.e., delayed start). All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

PHS Assignment Request Form

All instructions in the How to Apply- Application Guide must be followed.

Foreign Organizations

Foreign (non-U.S.) organizations must follow policies described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, and procedures for foreign organizations described throughout the How to Apply- Application Guide.

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management (SAM)

See Part 2. Section III.1 for information regarding the requirement for obtaining a unique entity identifier and for completing and maintaining active registrations in System for Award Management (SAM), NATO Commercial and Government Entity (NCAGE) Code (if applicable), eRA Commons, and Grants.gov

4. Submission Dates and Times

Part I. contains information about Key Dates and times. 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. When a submission date falls on a weekend or Federal holiday, the application deadline is automatically extended to the next business day.

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, NIH’s electronic system for grants administration. NIH 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 and time.  If a Changed/Corrected application is submitted after the deadline, the application will be considered late. Applications that miss the due date and time are subjected to the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 2.3.9.2 Electronically Submitted Applications.

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 How to Apply-Application Guide.

5. Intergovernmental Review (E.O. 12372)

This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review.

6. Funding Restrictions

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

Pre-award costs are allowable only as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 7.9.1 Selected Items of Cost.

Applications must be submitted electronically following the instructions described in the How to Apply 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 How to Apply – Application Guide. If you encounter a system issue beyond your control that threatens your ability to complete the submission process on-time, you must follow the Dealing with System Issues guidance. For assistance with application submission, contact the Application Submission Contacts in Section VII.

Important reminders:

All PD(s)/PI(s) must include their eRA Commons ID in the Credential field of the Senior/Key Person Profile form. 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 NIH. See Section III of this NOFO for information on registration requirements.

The applicant organization must ensure that the unique entity identifier provided on the application is the same identifier used in the organization’s profile in the eRA Commons and for the System for Award Management. Additional information may be found in the How to Apply Application Guide.

See more tips for avoiding common errors.

Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness and compliance with application instructions by the Center for Scientific Review and responsiveness by NIDA, NIH. Applications that are incomplete, non-compliant and/or nonresponsive will not be reviewed.

Recipients or subrecipients must submit any information related to violations of federal criminal law involving fraud, bribery, or gratuity violations potentially affecting the federal award. See Mandatory Disclosures, 2 CFR 200.113 and NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 4.1.35.

Send written disclosures to the NIH Chief Grants Management Officer listed on the Notice of Award for the IC that funded the award and to the HHS Office of Inspector Grant Self Disclosure Program at [email protected].

Post Submission Materials

Applicants are required to follow the instructions for post-submission materials, as described in the policy

Section V. Application Review Information

1. Criteria

Only the review criteria described below will be considered in the review process. Applications submitted to the NIH in support of the NIH mission are evaluated for scientific and technical merit through the NIH peer review system.

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 scored review criteria and additional review criteria (as applicable for the project proposed). An application does not need to be strong in all categories to be judged likely to have a major scientific impact.

Reviewers will consider Factors 1, 2 and 3 in the determination of scientific merit, and in providing an overall impact score. In addition, Factors 1 and 2 will each receive a separate factor score. 

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

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.

2. Review and Selection Process

Applications will be evaluated for scientific and technical merit by (an) appropriate Scientific Review Group(s) convened by the Center for Scientific Review, in accordance with NIH peer review policy and procedures, using the stated review criteria. Assignment to a Scientific Review Group will be shown in the eRA Commons.

As part of the scientific peer review, all applications will receive a written critique.

Applications may undergo a selection process in which only those applications deemed to have the highest scientific and technical merit (generally the top half of applications under review) will be discussed and assigned an overall impact score.

Applications will be assigned on the basis of established PHS referral guidelines to the appropriate NIH Institute or Center. Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended applications. Following initial peer review, recommended applications will receive a second level of review by the appropriate national Advisory Council or Board. The following will be considered in making funding decisions:

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

If the application is under consideration for funding, NIH will request "just-in-time" information from the applicant as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 2.5.1. Just-in-Time Procedures. This request is not a Notice of Award nor should it be construed to be an indicator of possible funding.

Prior to making an award, NIH reviews an applicant’s federal award history in SAM.gov to ensure sound business practices. An applicant can review and comment on any information in the Responsibility/Qualification records available in SAM.gov. NIH will consider any comments by the applicant in the Responsibility/Qualification records in SAM.gov to ascertain the applicant’s integrity, business ethics, and performance record of managing Federal awards per 2 CFR Part 200.206 “Federal awarding agency review of risk posed by applicants.” This provision will apply to all NIH grants and cooperative agreements except fellowships.

3. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates

After the peer review of the application is completed, the PD/PI will be able to access his or her Summary Statement (written critique) via the eRA Commons. Refer to Part 1 for dates for peer review, advisory council review, and earliest start date.

Information regarding the disposition of applications is available in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 2.4.4 Disposition of Applications.

Section VI. Award Administration Information

1. Award Notices

A Notice of Award (NoA) is the official authorizing document notifying the applicant that an award has been made and that funds may be requested from the designated HHS payment system or office. The NoA is signed by the Grants Management Officer and emailed to the recipient’s business official.

In accepting the award, the recipient agrees that any activities under the award are subject to all provisions currently in effect or implemented during the period of the award, other Department regulations and policies in effect at the time of the award, and applicable statutory provisions.

Recipients must comply with any funding restrictions described in Section IV.6. Funding Restrictions. Any pre-award costs incurred before receipt of the NoA are at the applicant's own risk.  For more information on the Notice of Award, please refer to the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 5. The Notice of Award and NIH Grants & Funding website, see Award Process.

Individual awards are based on the application submitted to, and as approved by, the NIH and are subject to the IC-specific terms and conditions identified in the NoA.

ClinicalTrials.gov: If an award provides for one or more clinical trials. By law (Title VIII, Section 801 of Public Law 110-85), the "responsible party" must register and submit results information for certain “applicable clinical trials” on the ClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Registration and Results System Information Website (https://register.clinicaltrials.gov). NIH expects registration and results reporting of all trials whether required under the law or not. For more information, see https://grants.nih.gov/policy/clinical-trials/reporting/index.htm

Institutional Review Board or Independent Ethics Committee Approval: Recipient institutions must ensure that all protocols are reviewed by their IRB or IEC. To help ensure the safety of participants enrolled in NIH-funded studies, the recipient must provide NIH copies of documents related to all major changes in the status of ongoing protocols.

Data and Safety Monitoring Requirements: The NIH policy for data and safety monitoring requires oversight and monitoring of all NIH-conducted or -supported human biomedical and behavioral intervention studies (clinical trials) to ensure the safety of participants and the validity and integrity of the data. Further information concerning these requirements is found at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/hs/data_safety.htm and in the application instructions (SF424 (R&R) and PHS 398).

Investigational New Drug or Investigational Device Exemption Requirements: Consistent with federal regulations, clinical research projects involving the use of investigational therapeutics, vaccines, or other medical interventions (including licensed products and devices for a purpose other than that for which they were licensed) in humans under a research protocol must be performed under a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigational new drug (IND) or investigational device exemption (IDE).

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

The following Federal wide and HHS-specific policy requirements apply to awards funded through NIH:

• The rules listed at 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.
• All NIH grant and cooperative agreement awards include the NIH Grants Policy Statement as part of the terms and conditions in the Notice of Award (NoA). The NoA includes the requirements of this NOFO. For these terms of award, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart A: General and Part II: Terms and Conditions of NIH Grant Awards, Subpart B: Terms and Conditions for Specific Types of Grants, Recipients, and Activities.

All federal statutes and regulations relevant to federal financial assistance, including those highlighted in NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 4 Public Policy Requirements, Objectives and Other Appropriation Mandates.

Recipients are responsible for ensuring that their activities comply with all applicable federal regulations.  NIH may terminate awards under certain circumstances.  See 2 CFR Part 200.340 Termination and NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 8.5.2 Remedies for Noncompliance or Enforcement Actions: Suspension, Termination, and Withholding of Support. 

Pursuant to the Cybersecurity Act of 2015, Div. N, § 405, Pub. Law 114-113, 6 USC § 1533(d), the HHS Secretary has established a common set of voluntary, consensus-based, and industry-led guidelines, best practices, methodologies, procedures, and processes.

Successful recipients under this NOFO agree that:

When recipients, subrecipients, or third-party entities have:

1. ongoing and consistent access to HHS owned or operated information or operational technology systems; and 
2. receive, maintain, transmit, store, access, exchange, process, or utilize personal identifiable information (PII) or personal health information (PHI) obtained from the awarding HHS agency for the purposes of executing the award.

Recipients shall develop plans and procedures, modeled after the NIST Cybersecurity framework, to protect HHS systems and data. Please refer to NIH Post-Award Monitoring and Reporting for additional information. 

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 2 CFR Part 200, and other HHS, PHS, and NIH 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 NIH programmatic involvement with the recipients is anticipated during the performance of the activities. Under the cooperative agreement, the NIH 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 recipients for the project as a whole, although specific tasks and activities may be shared among the recipients and the NIH as defined below.

The PD(s)/PI(s) will have the primary responsibility for:

All aspects of their study, including any modification of study design, conduct of the study, quality control, data analysis and interpretation, preparation of publications, dissemination of data, tools, and technologies, and collaboration with other investigators.

The recipient agrees to accept close coordination, cooperation, and participation of NIH staff in those aspects of scientific and technical management of the study including those outlined in the section below that pertains to the programmatic involvement of NIH staff in Cooperative Agreement awards.

Support or other involvement of industry or any other third party in the study--e.g., participation by the third party; involvement of project resources or citing the name of the project or the NIH support; or special access to project results, data, findings, or resources--may be advantageous and appropriate. However, except for licensing of patents or copyrights, support or involvement of any third party will occur with the concurrence by NIH Program Officer to ensure objectivity of research.

Award recipients will own the rights in any tangible work products created under the terms of the cooperative agreement. Work products may include such things as research reports, papers, research, findings, training curricula, data sets, books, patient tools, and other materials. All such products shall be made accessible to the public. Recipients(s) will retain custody of and have primary rights to the data and software developed under these awards, subject to Government policies subject to Government policies regarding rights of access DHHS, PHS, and NIH policies.

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

The NIH Project Scientist will have access to the data and work with the PD(s)/PI(s) to ensure the objectives of the program are being met. The primary responsibility for the program resides with the recipients, although specific tasks and activities will be shared among the recipient and the NIH Project Scientist.

NIH support of this study is contingent upon adequate participant recruitment based on the Recipient's Milestone Accrual Plan submitted at the time of funding.

The recipient is expected to demonstrate best effort compliance. Failure to achieve minimally acceptable milestone recruitment levels may result in the withholding future support and or negotiating an orderly close-out of this study.

NIH staff will act as a resource and facilitator for activities of the recipient with non-HCS researchers and other NIH, DHHS, or other federally-sponsored research networks that may be relevant to this effort.

Serve as a resource to provide scientific/programmatic support during the accomplishment of the clinical trial by participating in the design of the activities, advising in the selection of sources or resources, advising in management and technical performance, or participating in the preparation of publications.

Participate in the monitoring of issues relating to recruitment, retention and follow-up of study participants, and monitoring of data integrity and quality control through consideration of the annual reports, site visits, patient logs, etc. This review may include, but is not limited to, compliance with the study protocol, meeting patient enrollment targets, adherence to uniform data collection procedures, and the timeliness and quality of data reporting as needed to the administration and evaluation core.

Assist in the development and modification of study protocols.

NIH staff will interact with the PD(s)/PI(s) on a regular basis to monitor progress. Monitoring may include: regular communication with the PD(s)/PI(S) and his staff, periodic site visits for discussion with the recipients' research team, observation of field data collection and management techniques, fiscal reviews, and other relevant stewardship matters.

Additionally, an agency program official or IC 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:

The PD(s)/PI(s) provide, in concert with the NIH staff, support necessary to ensure that sites and investigators, and NIH and other research partners fully comply with federal regulatory requirements, including but not limited to those relating to human subjects protections, informed consent, and reporting of adverse events.

Recipients and NIH will jointly develop appropriate confidentiality procedures for data collection, processing, storage and analysis to ensure the confidentiality of data on individual health care provider organization patients, health care providers and other institutions.

All recipients and NIH will cooperate to ensure the timely and broad dissemination of lessons learned, to inform researchers and health care systems engaged in research in health care settings.

Dispute Resolution:

Any disagreements that may arise in scientific or programmatic matters (within the scope of the award) between recipients and the NIH may be brought to Dispute Resolution. A Dispute Resolution Panel composed of three members will be convened. It will have three members: a designee of the investigator chosen without NIH staff voting from among the PI(s) of the application, one NIH designee, and a third designee with expertise in the relevant area who is chosen by the other two; in the case of individual disagreement, the first member may be chosen by the individual recipient. This special dispute resolution procedure does not alter the recipient's right to appeal an adverse action that is otherwise appealable in accordance with PHS regulation 42 CFR Part 50, Subpart D and DHHS regulation 45 CFR Part 16. 

Consistent with the 2023 NIH Policy for Data Management and Sharing, when data management and sharing is applicable to the award, recipients will be required to adhere to the Data Management and Sharing requirements as outlined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement. Upon the approval of a Data Management and Sharing Plan, it is required for recipients to implement the plan as described.

4. Reporting

When multiple years are involved, recipients will be required to submit the Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) annually and financial statements as required in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 8.4.1 Reporting. To learn more about post-award monitoring and reporting, see the NIH Grants & Funding website, see Post-Award Monitoring and Reporting.

A final RPPR, invention statement, and the expenditure data portion of the Federal Financial Report are required for closeout of an award, as described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement Section 8.6 Closeout. NIH NOFOs outline intended research goals and objectives. Post award, NIH will review and measure performance based on the details and outcomes that are shared within the RPPR, as described at 2 CFR Part 200.301.

Section VII. Agency Contacts

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, application errors and warnings, documenting system problems that threaten submission by the due date, and post-submission issues)

Finding Help Online: https://www.era.nih.gov/need-help (preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-402-7469 or 866-504-9552 (Toll Free)

General Grants Information (Questions regarding application instructions, application processes, and NIH grant resources)
Email: [email protected] (preferred method of contact)
Telephone: 301-480-7075

Grants.gov Customer Support (Questions regarding Grants.gov registration and Workspace)
Contact Center Telephone: 800-518-4726
Email: [email protected]

Pharmacotherapy Studies (Preclinical)

Drew Townsend, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Telephone: 301-443-4577
Email: [email protected]

Pharmacotherapy Studies (Clinical)

Evan S. Herrmann, Ph.D. 
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) 
Telephone: 301-827-6406 
Email: [email protected]

Therapeutic Devices

Will Aklin, Ph.D. 
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) 
Telephone: 301-827-5909 
Email: [email protected]

Digital Therapeutics

Karen Seymour, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Telephone: 301-496-2130 
Email: [email protected]

Behavioral Therapies

Carmela Reichel, Ph.D. 
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) 
Telephone: 301-827-6922 
Email: [email protected]

General Inquiries

Iván D. Montoya, M.D., M.P.H. 
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) 
Telephone: 301-827-5936 
Email: [email protected]

Examine your eRA Commons account for review assignment and contact information (information appears two weeks after the submission due date).

Chief Grants Management Officer
National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Email: [email protected]

Section VIII. Other Information

Recently issued trans-NIH policy notices may affect your application submission. A full list of policy notices published by NIH is provided in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts. All awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

Awards are made under the authorization of Sections 301 and 405 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241 and 284) and under Federal Regulations 42 CFR Part 52 and 2 CFR Part 200.