HIV/AIDS High Priority Drug Abuse Research (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAS 18 063

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAS 18 063

The HIV/AIDS High Priority Drug Abuse Research (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) funding opportunity (PAS-18-063) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant program designed to push forward research at the intersection of substance use and HIV/AIDS. It is anchored to NIH-wide HIV/AIDS priorities laid out for a three to five year horizon (referenced in NIH Notice NOT-OD-15-137) and focuses on encouraging projects that address high-impact, time-relevant questions where drug use and HIV epidemics overlap. In practical terms, the opportunity is meant to generate strong, targeted evidence on how drug abuse influences HIV risk, transmission, prevention, treatment outcomes, and broader health consequences, and how interventions can be improved for affected individuals and communities. The mechanism is an R01, which typically supports substantial, hypothesis-driven research programs, and the FOA explicitly allows applicants to propose studies with or without clinical trials ("clinical trial optional"), giving investigators flexibility to pursue observational, behavioral, implementation, biomedical, or mixed-method approaches as long as the work aligns with the program's high-priority goals.

This FOA sits within the NIH funding ecosystem under the broad activity category of education and health and is associated with CFDA number 93.279. The overall intent is to stimulate rigorous, high priority research that can meaningfully inform HIV/AIDS responses in contexts where drug use plays a critical role, including but not limited to injection drug use, substance use disorders that increase sexual risk behaviors, and structural or service-delivery barriers that prevent people who use drugs from accessing prevention and care. Because the announcement ties directly to NIH HIV/AIDS priorities, proposed projects are expected to demonstrate clear relevance to the national research agenda, strong public health significance, and the potential to improve outcomes such as HIV prevention uptake, viral suppression, retention in care, or reduction of HIV transmission in populations impacted by drug use.

Eligibility is broad and intentionally inclusive, reflecting NIH's interest in drawing on many sectors and settings to address HIV and substance use challenges. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. The FOA also permits applications from public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, as well as Native American tribal organizations that are not federally recognized tribal governments. Nonprofits are eligible both with and without 501(c)(3) IRS status (so long as they are not institutions of higher education), and for-profit organizations are eligible as well (other than small businesses), alongside small businesses and other organizational types. Beyond this standard list, the opportunity highlights additional eligible applicant categories, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions; Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISISs); Hispanic-serving Institutions; Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs); faith-based or community-based organizations; eligible federal government agencies; U.S. territories or possessions; regional organizations; and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). This breadth signals that NIH is open to research led by academic centers, community organizations, tribal entities, governmental public health bodies, and international partners where relevant.

The sponsor is the National Institutes of Health, and the opportunity was created on November 1, 2017, with an original closing date listed as September 7, 2018. The provided source information does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, which typically means interested applicants would need to consult the full FOA text and related NIH guidance for budget expectations, project period limits, and anticipated funding levels. Overall, PAS-18-063 is positioned as a research-driven investment aimed at producing actionable findings and scalable strategies to reduce the combined harms of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS, while allowing a wide range of institutions and organizations, including community and underserved-serving institutions, to compete for support.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "HIV/AIDS High Priority Drug Abuse Research (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): 93.279.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-11-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-09-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• 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 PAS 18 063

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