Precision HIV Health: Integrating Data and Implementation Science to Accelerate HIV Prevention and Treatment (R21/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA MH 24 100

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA MH 24 100

Precision HIV Health: Integrating Data and Implementation Science to Accelerate HIV Prevention and Treatment (R21/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-MH-24-100; CFDA 93.242) focused on speeding up the real-world impact of HIV prevention, treatment, and care by tightly linking data science with implementation science. The program is built around the idea that better HIV outcomes will come from interventions that are more precisely targeted to the realities of people and communities, and from implementation approaches that are designed to be sustainable in the settings where care and prevention actually happen. Although it supports work related to HIV, the announcement is explicit that clinical trials are not allowed under this mechanism, indicating the emphasis is on modeling, measurement, evaluation of implementation processes and strategies, and translation of data-driven insights into practice rather than testing clinical efficacy in a trial format.

A central goal of the announcement is to encourage “participatory” research that does not treat communities and frontline implementers as passive subjects, but as partners who help shape the research questions, data sources, interpretation of findings, and rollout of implementation strategies. In practice, this means applicants are expected to integrate meaningful engagement of community members, service organizations, health systems, and other implementing partners across every stage of the project, from planning through dissemination. The intent is to ensure that the resulting HIV interventions and implementation strategies are not only technically sound, but also feasible, acceptable, equitable, and responsive to local needs and constraints.

The scientific focus has three main pillars. First, it encourages applicants to use modern data science methods to model complex systems influencing HIV outcomes, including social and structural determinants of health. This points to approaches that can capture how factors like housing instability, stigma, incarceration, poverty, racism, transportation, and access to care interact with individual behavior and health services to shape HIV risk, care engagement, and viral suppression. The objective is not just descriptive analytics, but actionable modeling that can identify where targeted HIV prevention and treatment interventions, and the strategies used to implement them, are most likely to be effective and durable.

Second, the opportunity highlights the use of novel measurement approaches and modern statistical methods to evaluate implementation of data-driven discoveries. This signals an emphasis on rigorous, contemporary ways to measure implementation processes and outcomes (for example, adoption, reach, fidelity, sustainability, equity impacts, and cost considerations) and to analyze them in real-world contexts where randomized trials may not be feasible or appropriate. The “measurement” emphasis also implies interest in creative or improved ways to collect and integrate data, including potentially leveraging multiple data streams, improving timeliness, or capturing lived experiences and context that are often missed by traditional datasets.

Third, the announcement explicitly requires integration of community and implementing partner engagement throughout the research lifecycle. This is not an optional add-on; it is framed as a core component of the overall approach. The purpose is to produce interventions and implementation strategies that can move more quickly from analytic insight to practical uptake, while also avoiding solutions that look good on paper but fail in real settings due to misalignment with community priorities, workflow realities, or structural barriers.

The funding mechanism is an R21/R33, which generally supports a phased approach: an initial exploratory/developmental phase (R21) followed by a second phase (R33) intended to expand or confirm what was developed, assuming milestones are met. This structure fits the program’s aim of moving from building and refining models and implementation approaches to more advanced evaluation and scaling work without forcing applicants to claim full maturity at the outset. The opportunity is categorized under health-related research and uses a grant instrument type.

Eligibility is broad and includes many kinds of organizations that could contribute to HIV prevention and care innovation. Eligible applicants include 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; Native American tribal governments (federally recognized); Native American tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments); public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits (both with and without 501(c)(3) status, other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The announcement also calls out additional eligible applicant types such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, Indian/Native American tribal governments other than federally recognized, and non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations). This wide eligibility is consistent with the participatory and systems-oriented nature of the program, recognizing that impactful HIV implementation research often requires collaboration across academic, public health, community, and service delivery sectors, sometimes across national boundaries.

Key administrative details provided include the NIH as the sponsoring agency, the original closing date of 2023-11-22, and the creation date of 2023-06-29. An award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided source data. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as support for teams that can combine advanced, real-world data analysis with implementation science and deep community partnership to produce practical, targeted, and sustainable improvements in HIV prevention and treatment delivery, while staying outside the scope of clinical trial research.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Precision HIV Health: Integrating Data and Implementation Science to Accelerate HIV Prevention and Treatment (R21/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.242.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-06-29.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-11-22. (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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