Functional Wellness in HIV: Maximizing the Treatment Cascade (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | PA 18 136

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 18 136

The grant opportunity "Functional Wellness in HIV: Maximizing the Treatment Cascade (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number PA-18-136) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant program designed to support research that strengthens how HIV care is delivered from end to end, with the overall goal of improving health outcomes for people living with HIV. The central focus is the HIV treatment cascade, meaning the full continuum of steps that take someone from diagnosis to consistent engagement in care, initiation of antiretroviral therapy, long-term adherence, sustained viral suppression, and broader functional health and quality-of-life outcomes. The FOA emphasizes intervention development, suggesting that proposed projects should not only describe problems in care delivery, but also create and test practical strategies that improve real-world healthcare processes and patient experiences across this continuum. As indicated by "Clinical Trial Optional," applicants may propose studies that include clinical trials, but clinical trials are not required; this opens the door for a range of research designs, from implementation-focused interventions to pragmatic evaluations of care models, as long as the work clearly targets improved delivery across the cascade.

The opportunity is categorized under the Health and Education funding activity area and is associated with CFDA number 93.361. It uses the NIH R01 mechanism, which is typically intended for substantial, hypothesis-driven research projects that can support multi-year, multidisciplinary efforts. While the listing provided does not specify an award ceiling or the number of expected awards, the R01 structure generally implies competitive, peer-reviewed funding where budgets and project periods are proposed by the applicant and justified by the scope of work, within NIH policy and institute-specific guidelines. The program’s framing around "functional wellness" signals an interest in outcomes that extend beyond laboratory measures alone, such as viral suppression, and into how well individuals are able to live day to day, stay engaged in care, and maintain health in a durable way. That makes it well-suited to interventions that address persistent barriers like fragmented services, transportation and access constraints, stigma, mental health and substance use comorbidities, unstable housing, care coordination gaps, or clinic-level workflow limitations that can cause people to fall out of care.

Eligibility for this FOA is broad, reflecting NIH’s interest in bringing in diverse institutions and community-connected partners. Eligible applicants include all common government and academic entities such as state, county, 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. It also includes public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, non-federally recognized Native American tribal organizations, nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, and other categories. The FOA explicitly highlights additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, and non-U.S. (foreign) entities. This range strongly suggests NIH is encouraging approaches grounded in local realities, including projects that serve populations disproportionately affected by HIV and projects that leverage community trust, culturally specific service models, and partnerships between clinics, public health systems, and community organizations.

In practical terms, competitive proposals under this FOA would typically be expected to identify a clear point (or multiple points) in the treatment cascade where outcomes can be improved, propose an intervention that is feasible to implement in real healthcare settings, and define measurable outcomes tied to cascade performance and functional wellness. That could include improving linkage to care after diagnosis, reducing time to treatment initiation, increasing retention in care, supporting adherence and sustained viral suppression, improving coordination of co-occurring care needs, or integrating supportive services that keep patients engaged long-term. Because the FOA emphasizes improving the delivery of healthcare "across the continuum," it implicitly values interventions that are scalable, sustainable, and adaptable, not just tightly controlled efficacy studies. It is also consistent with the broader NIH emphasis on reducing health disparities and improving outcomes for groups that experience structural barriers to continuous HIV care.

Key administrative details from the source data include an original closing date of May 7, 2018, and a creation date of November 3, 2017. The sponsor is the National Institutes of Health, and the funding instrument type is a grant. Overall, this FOA can be understood as an NIH effort to move beyond simply knowing that antiretroviral therapy works, and toward ensuring that health systems, communities, and service delivery models reliably help people living with HIV access, remain in, and benefit fully from care in ways that support long-term wellness.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Functional Wellness in HIV: Maximizing the Treatment Cascade (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): 93.361.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-11-03.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-05-07. (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.

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