Federal grant programs / Department of Health and Human Services

Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes (93.226)

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$686 million
• Grant awards791
• Typical award$728,823
• Awarded in FY 2025$90.8 million
• Size rank303 of 1824
• Type of assistanceProject grants

Key findings

• Annual funding fell from $135 million in fiscal 2021 to $90.8 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 303rd largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 48% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 43 states and territories.

What the program funds

To support research and evaluations, demonstration projects, research networks, and multidisciplinary centers and to disseminate information on health care and on systems for the delivery of such care involving: (1) The quality, effectiveness, efficiency, appropriateness and value of health care services; (2) quality measurement and improvement; (3) the outcomes, cost, cost-effectiveness, and use of health care services and access to such services; (4) clinical practice, including primary care and practice-oriented research; (5) evidence evaluation; (6) existing and innovative health care technologies including artificial intelligence and telehealth, facilities and equipment; (7) health care costs, productivity, organization and delivery, and market forces; (8) health promotion and disease prevention, including clinical preventive services and nutrition; (9) health statistics, surveys, database development, and epidemiology; (10) digital healthcare research; (11) patient safety research, including healthcare-associated infections; (12) education and research on therapeutics, including overmedication of children; (13) inner city and rural areas; (14) priority populations as enumerated in statute and as allowed by applicable law; (15) training not including in other assistance listings; (16) quality measures; and (17) diagnostic accuracy, all of which are to be conducted in accordance with gold standard science.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

Federal, State or local government agencies, federally-recognized Indian Tribal Governments, U.S. Territories, non-government organizations,public or private institutions of higher education, and other public or nonprofit private agencies, institutions, or organizations. For-profit organizations are eligible to apply for these grants only if "cooperative agreement" is the designated funding mechanism. Organizations described in section 501(c)4 of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying are not eligible.

What the money can and cannot pay for

The research should contribute to the health services knowledge base from which empirically based information can be derived by policymakers, both immediately and over the coming decades. Grants include funds for direct costs (such as personnel, travel, equipment, or supplies) necessary to carry out an approved project as well as funds for the reimbursement of applicable indirect costs (also referred to as facilities and administrative costs). Unallowable costs are indicated in the HHS Grants Policy Statement.

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

$11,475 to $1,500,000; $362,130 average. These are total cost figures (direct costs plus associated facilities and administrative costs, if appropriate).

Examples of funded projects

Fiscal Year2025: Based on availability of funding, it is anticipated that AHRQ-supported grants will continue to focus on digital healthcare research, patient safety research, Long COVID, primary care, prevention and care management, and quality, effectiveness, and efficiency research.Fiscal Year2026: No current data available.

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

Colleges and universities received 69% of the money, nonprofits 27% and tribes 0.2%.

By state

37 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.