The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has issued a Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for a new initiative under the NIDA Racial Equity Initiative (REI). This initiative is titled "Reaching Equity at the Intersection of HIV and Substance Use: Novel Approaches to Address HIV Related Health Disparities in Underserved Racial and/or Ethnic Populations." The FOA is forecasted under the opportunity number NOT-DA-24-052 and is anticipated to use the NIH R01 activity code. It reflects NIDA’s ongoing commitment to address persistent racial and ethnic health disparities, especially in the context of substance use and HIV.
The purpose of the FOA is to solicit research applications that propose novel strategies for addressing the intersectional health challenges faced by underserved racial and ethnic groups disproportionately affected by HIV and substance use. The overarching objective is to support innovative approaches that can contribute to reaching health equity by tackling social, structural, and systemic determinants contributing to disparities. Through this initiative, NIDA aims to promote scientific advancement that is both community-informed and equity-focused, encouraging collaborations that are responsive to the unique needs and contexts of affected populations.
The funding scope under this program allows for exploratory and hypothesis-driven research aimed at producing generalizable knowledge. While the exact allowable spending parameters will be detailed in the forthcoming FOA, this notice signals a total expected program funding of $2,000,000 for the fiscal year 2026. The estimated number of awards has not been provided at this stage, nor have the specific minimum or maximum award sizes been disclosed. However, the FOA will follow NIH's R01 grant structure, which typically supports multi-year research projects.
Eligibility for this opportunity is broad and includes a wide range of organizations, including small businesses, independent school districts, higher education institutions (both public and private), tribal governments and organizations, public housing authorities, nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status, and state, county, and local governments. For-profit entities other than small businesses are also eligible. More specific eligibility information will be outlined in the final FOA when it is published.
The FOA is expected to be published in Summer 2025, with the application due date currently estimated as December 15, 2025. Awards are projected to be made by July 1, 2026, which is also the estimated project start date. Since this is a forecasted opportunity, applicants cannot currently submit proposals but are encouraged to begin developing collaborations and research concepts in advance. The grant is not offered on a rolling basis, but it is expected to recur; based on the forecasted closing date and pattern, the next cycle is projected for December 2026.
Potential applicants are advised to monitor the NIH and Grants.gov portals for the official FOA publication. For further details or inquiries regarding this funding opportunity, applicants can contact the NIH OPERA DGSI Systems Policy Branch at operasystemspolicy@nih.gov. While a specific point of contact or phone number is not listed, this email address is provided for communications relating to policy and system-level inquiries tied to NIH grant operations.
