Forecast to Publish a Notice of Funding Opportunity Announcement for Addressing Determinants of Health Disparities Among Rural Populations (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional)

The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) intends to publish a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to support intervention and etiologic studies in rural communities to address factors that increase, reduce, or prevent disparities in health outcomes among rural populations. Areas of research interest that may be addressed include but are not limited to: • Studies that utilize the life course continuum to address health disparities in rural populations considering risk factors that differentially impact health. • Development, adaptation, and/or implementation of community-engaged interventions that improve quality of life, well-being, and health outcomes in rural populations. • Adaptation of technologies (e.g., virtual care, remote monitoring) to address access to healthcare resources in rural areas. • Health service and care models that focus on ways to improve rural health and meet related needs through local community collaborations such as with churches, schools, libraries, and grocery stores. • Studies that investigate health-related resilience or protective factors as well as strategies to promote health. • Studies that examine the integration of health care systems and community services (e.g., public health departments, mining facilities, agricultural farms, health systems, school systems, community-based organizations, businesses, etc.) to address rural health disparities. • Implementation studies to advance the reach, effectiveness, and sustainability of evidence-based interventions in rural communities. This NOFO will utilize the R01 activity code.

The major elements in evaluating all new grant and renewal grant applications include assessments of the scientific merit and general significance of the proposed study and its objectives; the technical adequacy of the experimental design and approach; the competency of the proposed investigator or group to successfully pursue the project; the adequacy of the available and proposed facilities and resources; and the necessity of the budget components requested in relation to the proposed project and the relevance and importance to the announced program objectives. SBIR and STTR grants: For Phase I grant applications, the criteria used are the soundness and technical merit of the proposed approach; the qualifications of the proposed principal investigator, supporting staff, and consultants; the technological innovation of the proposed research; the potential of the proposed suitability of the facilities and research environment; and where applicable, the adequacy of assurances detailing the proposed means for safeguarding human or animal subjects and/or protecting against or minimizing any adverse effect on the environment. For Phase II grant applications, the criteria used are the degree to which the Phase I objectives were met and feasibility demonstrated; the scientific and technical merit of the proposed approach for achieving the Phase II objectives; the qualifications of the proposed principal investigator, supporting staff and consultants; the technological...