Center of Excellence for Research on Complementary and Integrative Health (P01,Clinical Trial Optional) | PAR 20 138

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 20 138

The Center of Excellence for Research on Complementary and Integrative Health (CERCIH) funding opportunity (PAR-20-138) is an NIH grant program run through the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) that supports large, coordinated research centers built around true multi-project teamwork. The intent is to fund a single integrated program made up of three or more closely connected research projects that gain clear scientific value from being pursued together rather than as separate standalone grants. In practice, NCCIH is looking for centers where the projects inform each other, share expertise and resources, and create measurable synergy, meaning the combined output is stronger, faster, or more innovative than what the same projects could produce independently.

This program uses the P01 mechanism, which is designed for multi-project research and typically includes a leadership and administrative structure to keep the overall effort cohesive. Applications are expected to come from outstanding multidisciplinary teams and to blend multiple research approaches, which could include laboratory, computational, translational, and human mechanistic work, as long as the overall center remains tightly integrated around high-priority scientific questions. A successful application would normally show a unifying theme, strong rationale for why multiple projects must be coordinated, and a plan for how the center will manage shared activities, collaboration, data flow, and quality control across projects.

A key boundary of the announcement is what kinds of human research it will and will not support. The FOA allows studies that involve human participants when the goal is mechanistic understanding, such as research that investigates biological, behavioral, or physiological mechanisms relevant to complementary and integrative health approaches. However, it explicitly does not support clinical trials focused on efficacy or effectiveness. In other words, applicants should not propose trials aimed at proving whether an intervention works in the clinical sense or comparing outcomes the way a typical treatment trial would. The clinical trial language in the title can be confusing, but the main message is that mechanistic human studies may be acceptable while efficacy/effectiveness trials are outside the scope.

All proposed work must align closely with NCCIHs mission and fit within the institutes current Strategic Plan priorities. That means the center theme and each project should address questions that NCCIH views as high relevance and high priority for the field of complementary and integrative health research. The multi-project structure is meant to push beyond incremental work by coordinating different angles on a shared scientific problem, for example by connecting mechanistic studies to preclinical work, biomarkers, or behavioral science in a way that produces integrated conclusions.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, city or township, and 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 that are not federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicant categories such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), Hispanic-serving institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions.

There are important restrictions related to foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply as the applicant organization. At the same time, foreign components are allowed under NIH policy, meaning a U.S. applicant can include certain well-justified foreign collaboration elements as part of the overall project, consistent with the NIH Grants Policy Statement definition of a foreign component.

Administrative details in the posted source indicate this is a discretionary grant in the health category (CFDA 93.213), created on March 16, 2020, with an original closing date listed as May 7, 2023. The award ceiling shown is $1,250,000. The opportunity description does not specify the exact number of expected awards in the provided text, but the intent is clearly to support center-level awards that bundle multiple projects into one coordinated program.

Overall, this opportunity is best suited for teams that already have strong collaborative footing and a compelling, integrated research plan in complementary and integrative health, where at least three projects can be tightly linked to answer a larger question with shared methods, shared resources, and a combined scientific payoff that would be difficult to achieve through separate individual grants.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Center of Excellence for Research on Complementary and Integrative Health (P01,Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.213.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-03-16.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-05-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,250,000.00 in funding.
• 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 20 138

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