NIDA REI: Racial Equity Visionary Award Program for Research on Substance Use and Racial Equity (DP1 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA DA 23 026

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA DA 23 026

The NIDA REI: Racial Equity Visionary Award Program for Research on Substance Use and Racial Equity (RFA-DA-23-026) is a National Institutes of Health funding opportunity from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) that supports bold, high-impact research aimed at reducing racial and other population-level inequities tied to substance use and substance use disorders (SUD). The mechanism is a DP1 award (NIH Director's Pioneer-type approach in spirit, with an emphasis on visionary, transformative ideas), and it is designed specifically for exceptionally creative early career investigators. The central expectation is that the proposed work will tackle persistent, difficult-to-solve drivers of disparities in both health and broader consequences of substance use, including unequal medical outcomes and unequal social impacts experienced across different communities.

Projects are expected to be more than incremental. The program is looking for research that reframes entrenched problems or introduces new approaches that could meaningfully shift the field toward equity. Applicants can come from many disciplines, reflecting the reality that inequities related to substance use are shaped by interacting clinical, behavioral, social, structural, and policy factors. While proposals may draw from diverse scientific areas, they should remain tightly focused on identifying and addressing mechanisms that create or sustain disparities in substance use-related harms, and on producing knowledge or strategies with real potential to advance equity across affected populations.

The opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding and uses the grant funding instrument. The activity area is listed under education and health (CFDA 93.279). Clinical trials are optional, meaning an applicant may propose a project that includes a clinical trial component if it is scientifically appropriate, but a trial is not required to be responsive. This flexibility allows projects to range from intervention development and evaluation to implementation or systems-focused studies, as long as the work aligns with the program's equity-driven goals.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governments. Eligible applicants include state, county, city or 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 and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding universities where applicable); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The announcement also highlights additional eligible applicant types such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions.

Foreign eligibility is limited in a way that is common across many NIH opportunities. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations and foreign institutions) are not eligible to apply as the primary applicant organization, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. At the same time, foreign components are allowed as defined by the NIH Grants Policy Statement, which typically means a U.S. applicant can include specific, justified international elements of the project when they are essential to the science, subject to NIH rules and review.

Key administrative details provided include an application due date of November 14, 2024, and an award ceiling listed as $700,000. The funding opportunity was created on August 9, 2022. Overall, the program is positioned to fund early career investigators with unusually innovative ideas that could produce outsized advances in understanding and reducing inequities in substance use-related outcomes, particularly where disparities have remained stubborn despite prior research and interventions.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NIDA REI: Racial Equity Visionary Award Program for Research on Substance Use and Racial Equity (DP1 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.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-08-09.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-11-14. (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 $700,000.00 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 DA 23 026

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: