Feasibility Clinical Trials of Mind and Body Interventions for NCCIH High Priority Research Topics (R34 Clinical Trial Required)
Can you apply?
This grant is for academic institutions and research organizations planning feasibility clinical trials of mind-body interventions. Eligible applicants include universities, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and minority-serving institutions. Projects must focus on complementary and integrative health conditions identified as NCCIH high-priority research topics. The R34 award supports preliminary trials that generate data necessary to plan a larger clinical trial, not the full-scale efficacy study itself.
Applicants should have capacity to conduct clinical research with human participants. Prior contact with NCCIH program officers is strongly encouraged before submitting. Domestic and eligible foreign components of U.S. organizations may apply. Applicants should demonstrate a clear pathway to a subsequent full-scale trial.
This grant is for academic institutions and research organizations planning feasibility clinical trials of mind-body interventions. Eligible applicants include universities, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and minority-serving institutions. Projects must focus on complementary and integrative health conditions identified as NCCIH high-priority research topics. The R34 award supports preliminary trials that generate data necessary to plan a larger clinical trial, not the full-scale efficacy study itself.
Applicants should have capacity to conduct clinical research with human participants. Prior contact with NCCIH program officers is strongly encouraged before submitting. Domestic and eligible foreign components of U.S. organizations may apply. Applicants should demonstrate a clear pathway to a subsequent full-scale trial.
Program description
The goal of this notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) is to support feasibility trials of complementary and integrative health approaches with physical and/or psychological therapeutic inputs (often called mind and body interventions) for conditions that have been identified by NCCIH as high-priority research topics. This funding opportunity is intended to support feasibility clinical trials that provide new information that are scientifically necessary for the planning and conduct of a subsequent clinical efficacy or effectiveness study, pragmatic trial, or dissemination and implementation trial within NCCIHs mission. NCCIH expects that applications to this NOFO will describe the planned future clinical trial and in so doing demonstrate that the proposed (R34) research is scientifically necessary to design or plan the subsequent competitive full-scale clinical trial. Under this R34, the data collected should be used to fill gaps in scientific knowledge necessary to develop a competitive full-scale clinical trial, including, but not limited to the following: examining feasibility and acceptability of interventions lacking published data; tailoring or adapting the content or structure of an intervention to a specific population, modality, or setting; refining the intervention to determine the most appropriate frequency or duration; determining feasibility of recruitment, retention, and data collection procedures; refining and assessing the feasibility of protocolized multi-component interventions; or examining acceptability and adherence of control conditions. The subsequent full-scale clinical trial should have the potential to make a significant impact on public health. Prior to submitting to this NOFO, applicants are encouraged to contact the appropriate NCCIH Scientific/Research contact person for the science area of the planned application.
Who can apply
Eligible applicants
- 501(c)(3) Public Charity
- City / Municipal Government
- Community Health Center
- County Government
- Faith-based Organization
- Nonprofits
- Private University
- Public Authority
- Public K-12 School
- Public University
- Small Business (SBA-defined)
- Special District
- State Government
- Tribal Nation
- Tribal Organization
Details
This grant is for academic institutions and research organizations planning feasibility clinical trials of mind-body interventions. Eligible applicants include universities, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, and minority-serving institutions. Projects must focus on complementary and integrative health conditions identified as NCCIH high-priority research topics. The R34 award supports preliminary trials that generate data necessary to plan a larger clinical trial, not the full-scale efficacy study itself.
Applicants should have capacity to conduct clinical research with human participants. Prior contact with NCCIH program officers is strongly encouraged before submitting. Domestic and eligible foreign components of U.S. organizations may apply. Applicants should demonstrate a clear pathway to a subsequent full-scale trial.
How to apply
Application links
Required documents
- SF-424 (R&R) Application for Federal Assistance
- Project Narrative (Research Plan)
- Budget and Budget Justification
- Biographical Sketches (PD/PI and key personnel)
- Other Support documentation
- Letters of Institutional Support
- Human Subjects Research documentation (IRB approval or plan)
Program contact
- 👤 National Institutes of Health
- 📧 grantsinfo@nih.gov
- 📞 301-402-2541
Funding track record
Recent awards under CFDA 93.213 from the last 3 years — real organizations that won funding through this same program.
Top 10 Largest Recent Awards
-
$22,367,527
-
$21,646,919
-
$19,236,131
-
$17,730,528
-
$15,036,701
-
$14,473,882
-
$12,748,932
-
$11,956,053
-
$11,225,697
-
$10,919,780
Top States by Funding
- MA 13 awards $80.2M
- CA 12 awards $79.7M
- WA 8 awards $69.9M
- NC 7 awards $52.3M
- NY 6 awards $40.0M
Source: USAspending.gov — federal spending transparency. Data covers last 3 years.
Funding history
Annual funding for this program — Federal obligations (CFDA 93.213). How funding has trended year over year.
| 2024 | $240,178,154 | |
| 2025 | $232,899,116 | |
| 2026 est. | $2,655,626 |
FAQ
Who is eligible to apply for this grant?
Universities, research hospitals, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, minority-serving institutions (HBCUs, Hispanic-serving, etc.), and tribal colleges can apply. The applicant institution must have capacity to conduct clinical research.
What is the R34 award intended to fund?
The R34 funds feasibility trials that test whether a mind-body intervention can be recruited for, delivered, and measured in a specific population. It generates pilot data needed to design a larger clinical trial, not the full-scale trial itself.
Which health conditions are eligible?
Only conditions designated as high-priority research topics by NCCIH (the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health) are eligible. Applicants should review the NCCIH priority list before applying.
When is the application deadline?
The fixed deadline is November 17, 2026. This is a single-cycle deadline, not rolling.
How much funding can I request?
Award amounts are not pre-specified in this NOFO. Contact your NCCIH program officer early to discuss realistic budget expectations for your feasibility study.
💡 Tips for applicants
- Contact your NCCIH program officer early. Pre-submission consultation is strongly encouraged and helps align your study design with funder expectations.
- Clearly articulate the gap your feasibility study will fill. Explain why preliminary data is scientifically necessary before launching the full-scale trial.
- Design the feasibility trial to directly answer questions about recruitment, retention, intervention delivery, or adherence that the larger trial will face.
- Focus on mind-body interventions (physical and/or psychological components) for NCCIH-prioritized conditions. Off-topic proposals will be rejected.
- Build in a realistic timeline to the subsequent full-scale trial. Reviewers want confidence that this feasibility work will actually lead to a funded clinical trial.
⚠️ Common mistakes
Proposing a full efficacy trial instead of a true feasibility study. Failing to clearly link proposed feasibility work to a specific, high-priority NCCIH research topic. Submitting without pre-award contact with NCCIH program staff, resulting in misaligned scope or budget.
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