Accelerating the Pace of Drug Abuse Research Using Existing Data (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 19 368

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 19 368

Accelerating the Pace of Drug Abuse Research Using Existing Data (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) is a National Institutes of Health discretionary grant opportunity (PAR-19-368) designed to speed up progress in substance use research by supporting innovative analyses of data that already exist. Instead of funding new large-scale data collection as the core activity, this FOA prioritizes projects that make high-impact use of extant datasets, including social science and behavioral studies, administrative and service system records, community-based or clinical datasets, and neuroimaging data. The central idea is to unlock additional value from data resources that have already been built, using modern analytic approaches to answer important questions more quickly and efficiently.

The research scope is broad but focused on understanding drug use behaviors and related outcomes across the lifespan. In this FOA, drug use behaviors are explicitly defined to include alcohol, tobacco, prescription drugs, and other drugs. Applications are encouraged to address etiology and epidemiology, meaning studies can examine causes, contributing factors, distribution of risk, and patterns of use within and across populations. Competitive projects may investigate how substance use starts, escalates, remits, or recurs, and how these trajectories relate to later consequences such as morbidity and mortality. The announcement also highlights interest in risk and resilience processes, including how protective factors or adverse exposures shape vulnerability to substance use disorders and related psychopathology.

A major emphasis is placed on prevention and service delivery implications. The FOA welcomes analyses that inform strategies to prevent drug use and HIV, and it also supports research on health service utilization. This can include studies examining access to care, patterns of treatment engagement, retention, quality of services, efficiency, and outcomes across prevention and treatment systems. The goal is not only to describe problems, but to produce findings that can guide the development, testing, implementation, and delivery of high-quality, effective, and efficient prevention and treatment services for drug abuse and HIV. Because the mechanism is R01, the expectation is for a well-developed, hypothesis-driven research plan with strong analytic rigor, clear public health significance, and a credible path to actionable knowledge.

The FOA is “Clinical Trial Optional,” which means applicants may propose a study that includes a clinical trial if it is appropriate, but a clinical trial is not required. In practice, many applications under this type of announcement focus on secondary analyses, data linkage, quasi-experimental designs, natural experiments, predictive modeling, or advanced statistical methods applied to existing datasets, though the optional clinical trial language leaves room for proposals that meet NIH’s clinical trial definition when relevant.

Eligibility is intentionally wide to encourage participation across sectors and institution types. Eligible applicants include a full range of government entities (state, county, city or township, special district), independent school districts, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, and tribal entities (including federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations). The FOA also permits applications from public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. In addition, the opportunity explicitly calls out several “other eligible applicants,” underscoring inclusion of Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISI institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. (foreign) entities.

From an administrative standpoint, the program is offered as a grant under NIH funding activity areas tied to education and health, with CFDA numbers 93.273, 93.279, and 93.399. The record lists an award ceiling of $499,999, and the posting was created on 2019-09-09. The original closing date shown is 2022-01-07, which is important for timing, although applicants should always verify current deadlines and any reissued or updated versions of the announcement through NIH and Grants.gov.

Overall, this opportunity is aimed at researchers who can take high-value existing datasets and apply creative, rigorous methods to answer pressing questions about substance use and related disorders, HIV prevention, and service systems. Strong applications are likely to be those that clearly justify why the chosen dataset(s) can answer the proposed questions, demonstrate methodological sophistication, address important public health needs, and produce results that can inform prevention, treatment, and policy decisions without the delay and expense of collecting entirely new data.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Accelerating the Pace of Drug Abuse Research Using Existing Data (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.273, 93.279, 93.399.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-09-09.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-01-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $499,999.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for PAR 19 368

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