National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) Funding Policies and Considerations

Introduction

NCCIH is committed to supporting research and training activities that advance the Center’s mission, spanning from early‑stage exploratory studies to large‑scale collaborative investigations, including training programs aimed at investigators across all career stages. In making funding decisions, NCCIH maintains a balanced portfolio that is in alignment with the Unified Funding Strategy and reflects the NCCIH Research Framework, from basic and mechanistic science to translational, clinical, and implementation research. By ensuring balance in scientific approaches, research maturity, and training opportunities, NCCIH fosters innovation, enhances research rigor and reproducibility, builds research capacity, and generates the evidence to inform clinical practice and public health. 

Funding Guidelines 

Competing Awards (Type 1 and Type 2):

NCCIH assesses each competing application individually based on scientific merit and alignment with NCCIH priorities.  Scientific aims and budgets may be adjusted for programmatic, budgetary, or administrative reasons.  Awards will not include cost-of-living or inflationary adjustments.

• New and Early-Stage Investigators
• As described in the NIH’s Next Generation Researchers Initiative (NGRI)  and NIH’s policy on early-stage investigators, NCCIH is committed to providing substantial and sustained support for early-stage investigators (ESIs) and new investigators in the early stages of their careers for new competing (Type 1) R01 and first renewal (Type 2) applications. 

Non-competing Awards (Type 5)

• NCCIH will award noncompeting (Type 5) awards at the previously committed levels indicated in the Notice of Award.