DoW Tick-Borne Disease Idea Development Award
🏛 Defense Health Agency Contracting Activity - DHACA (DOD-AMRAA)
✓ Free, no account · Source: Grants.gov · Last verified Sep 12, 2026
Can you apply?
This grant is for early-stage research on tick-borne diseases, especially Lyme disease. Eligible applicants include academic institutions, research hospitals, nonprofit organizations, and other entities that can conduct research and employ qualified investigators. A Career Development Option supports early-career researchers mentored by experienced tick-borne disease experts. Researchers must have the capacity to conduct rigorous, innovative research with institutional support and compliance infrastructure.
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Program description
Summary: The intent of the fiscal year 2026 (FY26) Tick-Borne Disease Research Program (TBDRP) Idea Development Award (IDA) is to support conceptually innovative research that could lead to impactful discoveries or significant advancements that will accelerate progress toward reducing the burden of Lyme disease and/or other tick-borne diseases and conditions, and improving patient care and/or the quality of life. Applications should propose research that is conceptually innovative, introduces a new concept or question, challenges existing paradigms, approaches issues from a new perspective, or exhibits other uniquely creative qualities; and should not merely be a next logical step or an incremental advance on published data or ongoing research.
Distinctive Features: A Career Development Option is available to eligible early-career investigators who propose to conduct impactful mechanism-relevant research under the mentorship of an experienced tick-borne disease researcher(s). Applications submitted under the IDA – Career Development Option (IDA-CDO) will be reviewed using separate, career development-specific evaluation criteria by a separate, dedicated peer review panel; and are subject to a lower cost limit than those submitted under the standard IDA.
Who can apply
Eligible applicants
How to apply
Application links
Key dates & requirements
Required documents
- SF-424 (federal application form)
- Project Narrative/Research Plan
- Budget and Budget Justification
- Biosketches of key personnel
- Institutional Commitment letters (for Career Development Option, mentor commitment letter)
Program contact
- 👤 Ebony S Simmons Grantor
- 📧 help@eBRAP.org
- 📞 301-619-2105
Funding track record
Recent awards under CFDA 12.420 from the last 3 years — real organizations that won funding through this same program.
Top 10 Largest Recent Awards
-
$2,265,729,366
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$800,631,761
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$77,591,450
-
$74,531,880
-
$55,443,120
-
$34,191,124
-
$24,783,894
-
$21,394,379
-
$19,100,256
-
$19,002,641
Top States by Funding
- MD 10 awards $3,150.1M
- NC 11 awards $132.3M
- CA 13 awards $114.4M
- FL 8 awards $99.8M
- MA 9 awards $90.0M
Source: USAspending.gov — federal spending transparency. Data covers last 3 years.
Funding history
Annual funding for this program — Federal obligations (CFDA 12.420). How funding has trended year over year.
| 2024 | $1,483,968,520 | |
| 2025 | $1,201,153,417 |
FAQ
Who can apply?
Academic institutions, research hospitals, nonprofits, and other research-capable organizations. Early-career investigators can apply under the Career Development Option with a mentor.
What's the deadline?
October 22, 2026. This is a fixed annual deadline for FY2026.
What kind of research is supported?
Conceptually innovative research on Lyme disease or other tick-borne diseases. Projects must introduce new concepts or challenge existing paradigms, not incremental advances.
Is this competitive?
Yes, very competitive. The program has a $3.5 million total pool. Strong preliminary data and innovative approaches significantly improve competitiveness.
What's the typical funding range?
Award amounts are not specified in the program description. Contact USAMRAA for typical IDA grant sizes.
💡 Tips for applicants
- Emphasize conceptual innovation: clearly explain why your approach is new or challenges existing assumptions, not just a next step.
- For Career Development Option applicants, identify an experienced mentor and describe their mentoring plan and commitment upfront.
- Ground innovation in solid preliminary data or strong scientific rationale to show feasibility despite the novel angle.
- Align your research tightly with reducing Lyme disease burden or improving patient care and quality of life outcomes.
- Address how your team has the expertise and institutional resources to execute this innovative research successfully.
⚠️ Common mistakes
Applications proposing incremental advances on existing published data or ongoing work are rejected. Weak or absent preliminary data supporting feasibility of innovative approaches undermines credibility. Career Development Option applicants without a committed, experienced mentor or clear mentoring plan are at significant disadvantage.
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