Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R34 Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 23 285

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 23 285

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding opportunity titled "Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R34 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number PAR-23-285) supports research projects aimed at improving health outcomes in Native American populations, including American Indians and Alaska Natives. The core idea is to fund work that produces practical, culturally grounded solutions to persistent and well-documented health inequities affecting these communities, including both acute and chronic conditions. The announcement emphasizes that Native communities often face distinct sociopolitical, historical, environmental, and systemic stressors that can worsen health risks and limit the impact of standard public health or clinical approaches. At the same time, it highlights community strengths, resilience, and local knowledge as essential assets that should shape how interventions are designed and carried out.

The FOA is broad in the kinds of research it will support, but it is clearly centered on intervention-relevant science. It allows (1) etiologic research when there is a major knowledge gap and the findings will directly inform how an intervention is developed or adapted, (2) studies that develop, adapt, or test health promotion and disease prevention interventions for efficacy or effectiveness, (3) research that evaluates culturally informed treatment, recovery, or related therapeutic interventions, and (4) dissemination and implementation research when evidence already exists that an intervention works, but barriers prevent it from being adopted, integrated into real-world settings, scaled, or sustained. In other words, the FOA is meant to cover the full pipeline from learning what drives a health issue in a specific context, to building or tailoring an intervention, to testing it, and finally to figuring out how to make it stick in real systems and communities.

A consistent theme throughout the opportunity is cultural appropriateness and long-term sustainability. Projects are expected to build on community resources, priorities, and resilience rather than impose outside models without adaptation. NIH is looking for science-based interventions that fit the local context and can realistically be maintained after the study ends. Applicants are also encouraged to design interventions with enough flexibility that they can be responsibly adapted and scaled to other Native communities when culturally appropriate, recognizing that communities differ and "one-size-fits-all" approaches are rarely effective.

This is an R34 mechanism, and the FOA notes that clinical trials are optional, meaning applicants may propose studies that include a clinical trial component or studies that do not, as long as the research aligns with the FOA goals. The overall funding instrument is a grant, and the opportunity is listed under several NIH CFDA numbers (93.113, 93.121, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.313, 93.361), reflecting participation across multiple NIH institutes and centers. The opportunity is categorized as discretionary and is primarily in the health-related activity area (with education and environment also noted in the activity category listing).

Eligibility is intentionally expansive to encourage applications from many types of organizations that work with or serve Native communities. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; 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; tribal organizations (including those other than federally recognized tribal governments); public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education when specified in the eligibility list); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); and small businesses. The FOA also calls out several additional eligible applicant types, such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISI institutions, Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, faith-based and community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions. Foreign organizations and foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, and non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible; however, foreign components as defined by the NIH Grants Policy Statement may be allowed, which typically means limited and well-justified foreign involvement can be included under NIH rules without the applicant organization being foreign.

Key timing details provided include a creation date of September 11, 2023, and an original closing date of January 7, 2027. The public summary does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards, which usually means applicants should consult the full FOA text and NIH institute-specific guidance for budget expectations, project period norms, and any institute participation details. Overall, this opportunity is geared toward projects that combine strong scientific methods with meaningful community relevance, producing interventions that are culturally informed, implementable, and capable of reducing morbidity and mortality in Native American populations.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R34 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113, 93.121, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.313, 93.361.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-09-11.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2027-01-07.
• 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 PAR 23 285

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