Urgent Competitive Revision to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Urgent Supplement Clinical Trial Optional)

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, has released a forecasted funding opportunity titled "Urgent Competitive Revision to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements." This opportunity enables current NIH grantees to apply for urgent competitive revisions in response to emerging public health crises that were not anticipated in their original award. The program will support rapid implementation of high-priority research in critical areas aligned with the public health emergency that prompted the urgent notice. This initiative builds on NIH’s long-standing commitment to advancing health-related research through flexible and responsive funding mechanisms. This funding mechanism, listed under Assistance Listing 93.310 – Trans-NIH Research Support, is categorized under discretionary grants and falls within the "Health" funding activity. While specific budget limits and the total program funding are not provided in the forecast, the mechanism is designed to support supplements to existing awards. Such revisions can cover new aims, extended scope, or significantly altered project directions necessary to respond to an urgent health crisis. Applicants should refer to the specific Guide Notices published by NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs) for the types of eligible revisions. Importantly, the opportunity is structured to allow only those applicants whose parent NIH award is currently active and responsive to the urgent Guide Notice at hand. The revision application must directly relate to the health crisis specified in the Guide Notice, and the parent grant’s Notice of Award must indicate the eligible NIH component. This design ensures that funds are rapidly and appropriately directed to research teams with existing capacity and relevant expertise. Applicants will be expected to justify the urgency and necessity of the requested revision, as well as its feasibility within the remaining project period. The anticipated application window opens May 1, 2026, and closes June 1, 2026, with awards expected as early as July 1, 2026. The revised project activities are also expected to commence on July 1, 2026. The NOFO (Notice of Funding Opportunity) is not yet published, and this remains a forecasted opportunity. Once officially released, the application process will require submission through NIH's standard channels, with the application routed to the awarding component listed in the parent grant. Eligible applicants span a wide range of public, nonprofit, and for-profit organizations. These include city, county, and state governments; higher education institutions (both public and private); independent school districts; 501(c)(3) and other nonprofit organizations; for-profit entities including small businesses; federally recognized and other Native American tribal entities; public housing authorities; and U.S. territories. Additionally, agencies of the federal government, foreign institutions, and faith- or community-based organizations are eligible, ensuring that a broad set of research actors can participate in this responsive mechanism. The primary point of contact for this opportunity is the Division of Grants Policy (DGP) within the Office of Policy for Extramural Research Administration (OPERA) at NIH. Inquiries can be submitted via email to [email protected]. As this is a forecasted opportunity, applicants should monitor updates from NIH Guide Notices and the official Grants.gov page for the final NOFO publication and submission requirements.