The NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) has released a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) PAR-22-233: Time-Sensitive Opportunities for Health Research (R61/R33 Clinical Trial Not Allowed).

This FOA establishes an accelerated review/award process to support research to understand health outcomes related to an unexpected and/or time-sensitive event (e.g., emergent environmental threat; pandemic; change in local, state, or national policy; natural disaster). Applications in response to this FOA must demonstrate that the research proposed is time-sensitive and must be initiated with minimum delay due to a limited window of opportunity to collect baseline data, answer key research questions, and/or prospectively evaluate a new policy or program. This FOA is intended to support opportunities in which empirical study could only be available through expedited review and funding, necessitating a substantially shorter process than the typical NIH grant review/award cycle. The time from submission to award is expected to occur within 4-5 months. However, administrative requirements and other unforeseen circumstances may delay issuance dates beyond that timeline.

A pre-application webinar was held on October 6, 2022, that provided an overview of the FOA and provided an opportunity to address participant questions. NIH staff discussed the purpose and scope of this funding opportunity, went over the scientific review process, and reviewed criteria and other logistical information. Included here are links to the webinar recording with captions, webinar slides, and Q&A.