Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA CA 18 028

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 18 028

The NIH funding opportunity titled "Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)" (RFA-CA-18-028) supports early-stage, exploratory research aimed at improving how cigarette smoking cessation is addressed among people living with HIV (PLWH) in the United States. The core goal is to reduce tobacco-related illness and premature death in this population by strengthening the effectiveness, fit, and reach of smoking cessation treatments specifically for PLWH. Projects are expected to generate practical evidence that can inform real-world efforts to improve cessation outcomes and to address the factors that make smoking cessation uniquely challenging or unevenly successful across different groups of PLWH.

A central theme of the announcement is optimization and adaptation of interventions that already have evidence behind them. The FOA encourages studies that systematically test existing, evidence-based smoking cessation approaches, including combinations of behavioral counseling and pharmacotherapy, and it also welcomes well-justified adaptations of those interventions to better match the needs of PLWH. While the primary focus is cigarette smoking cessation, the FOA allows studies that incorporate dual use or poly-tobacco use when it is relevant to achieving cigarette cessation, meaning applicants can address situations where people use cigarettes along with other tobacco products as part of a broader cessation strategy.

Applications need to go beyond describing an intervention and must include prospective, comparative evaluation of the intervention(s). In practice, this means funded projects should be designed to compare approaches (for example, standard care versus an adapted intervention, or two different evidence-based strategies) and measure cessation outcomes among current cigarette smokers who are PLWH. The FOA explicitly emphasizes evaluating cessation rates and sustained abstinence, signaling that investigators should consider outcome definitions and follow-up periods that capture durable quitting rather than only short-term reduction or brief abstinence.

The opportunity also highlights the importance of understanding why smoking remains prevalent and difficult to treat in the context of HIV. Research topics may include behavioral drivers (such as dependence, stress, mental health comorbidity, or treatment adherence challenges), as well as sociocultural conditions (such as stigma, social support, socioeconomic constraints, housing instability, or community norms) that influence smoking behavior and cessation success among PLWH. It also calls attention to smoking-related health disparities within the broader PLWH community, encouraging applicants to account for heterogeneity across subgroups. This framing invites projects that examine differential barriers and intervention effects across populations defined by factors like race and ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, geography, and other determinants that shape access and outcomes.

This FOA uses the NIH R21 mechanism and is described as "Clinical Trial Optional," meaning applicants can propose studies that include a clinical trial component, but they are not required to do so if the project’s aims can be met through other rigorous designs consistent with the FOA expectations for prospective, comparative evaluation. The award ceiling listed is $200,000, and the activity categories are aligned with health and education research under CFDA numbers 93.279 and 93.393. The sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health, and the original closing date for the opportunity was January 8, 2019.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governments. Eligible applicants include state, county, city/township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education where relevant); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also explicitly calls out additional eligible categories such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions. At the same time, it clearly restricts foreign involvement: non-U.S. entities and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components as defined by NIH policy are not allowed.

Overall, the opportunity is designed to move the field toward more effective, evidence-driven cessation strategies tailored to PLWH, with an emphasis on comparative testing, meaningful cessation outcomes (including sustained abstinence), and careful attention to the social and behavioral realities that contribute to tobacco use and disparities in HIV-affected communities in the United States.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.279, 93.393.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-08-24.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-01-08. (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 $200,000.00 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 RFA CA 18 028

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