Well Told Grants

Federal grant programs / Department of Health and Human Services

Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research (93.855)

Also known as National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research (Assistance Listing 93.855) is run by the National Institutes of Health, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. It awarded $22 billion in 13,282 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $1.6 million per award on average. 93 funding opportunities are open or forecast now.

The typical award was $599,596. Half of the 13,281 awards fell between $321,141 and $1.9 million, and they ranged from $0 to $446 million.

Key findings

What the program funds

To assist public and private nonprofit institutions and individuals to establish, expand and improve biomedical research and research training in infectious diseases and related areas; to conduct developmental research, to produce and test research materials. To assist public, private and commercial institutions to conduct developmental research, to produce and test research materials, to provide research services as required by the agency for programs in infectious diseases, and controlling disease caused by infectious or parasitic agents, allergic and immunologic diseases and related areas. Projects range from studies of microbial physiology and antigenic structure to collaborative trials of experimental drugs and vaccines, mechanisms of resistance to antibiotics as well as research dealing with epidemiological observations in hospitalized patients or community populations and progress in allergic and immunologic diseases. Because of this dual focus, the program encompasses both basic research and clinical research. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program expands and improves private sector participation in biomedical research. The SBIR Program intends to increase and facilitate private sector commercialization of innovations derived from Federal research and development; to increase small business participation in Federal research and development; and to foster and encourage participation of socially and economically disadvantaged small business concerns and women-owned small business concerns in technological innovation. The Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program stimulates and fosters scientific and technological innovation through cooperative research and development carried out between small business concerns and research institutions; to foster technology transfer between small business concerns and research institutions; to increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from Federal research and development; and to foster and encourage participation of socially and economically disadvantaged small business concerns and women-owned small business concerns in technological innovation. Research Career Development Awards support the development of scientists during the formative stages of their careers. Individual National Research Service Awards (NRSAs) are made directly to approve applicants for research training in specified biomedical shortage areas. In addition, Institutional National Research Service Awards are made to enable institutions to select and make awards to individuals to receive training under the aegis of their institutional program.

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

Open and forecast opportunities

68 more opportunities are listed with all open grants from Department of Health and Human Services.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

Universities, colleges, hospitals, laboratories, and other public or private nonprofit domestic institutions, including State and local units of government, and individuals are eligible to make application for grant support of research by a named principal investigator or a research career development candidate. For-profit organizations are also eligible, with the exception of NRSA. Individual NRSA awardees must be nominated and sponsored by a public or nonprofit private institution having staff and facilities appropriate to the proposed research training program. All NRSA awardees must be citizens or have been admitted to the United States for permanent residence. To be eligible, predoctoral candidates must have completed the baccalaureate degree, and postdoctoral awardees must have a professional or scientific degree (M.D., Ph.D., D.D.S., D.O., D.V.M., Sc.D., D.Eng., or equivalent domestic or foreign degree). SBIR grants can be awarded only to domestic small businesses (entities that are independently owned and operated for profit, are not dominant in the field in which research is being proposed and have no more than 500 employees). Primary employment (more than one-half time) of the principal investigator must be with the small business at the time of award and during the conduct of the proposed project. In both Phase I and Phase II, the research must be performed in the U.S. or its possessions.

Continue reading on SAM.gov

What the money can and cannot pay for

Beginning with fiscal year 1998, the direct costs awarded in the first year to a research project grant resulting from a competing renewal application will be limited to no more than a 20 percent increase over the direct costs awarded in the last non-competing year of that grant. Research grants provide funds for salaries, equipment, supplies, and travel. They also afford the collateral benefits of enriching the training experience of research workers. Grantees are expected to be judicious in using these funds. The application for a research grant sets forth specific terms and conditions and requires the signatures of the principal investigator and an official authorized to sign for the institution. Scientists and institutions are under an obligation to expend grant funds prudently for the purposes stated in the application and award document. For Research Career Development Awards (RCDAs) the scientists must demonstrate an outstanding research potential for independent research in the sciences related to transplantation, immunology, allergies, and immunological diseases. For National Research Service Awards (NRSAs), each individual who receives NRSA support is obligated upon termination of the award to comply with certain service and payback provisions. SBIR Phase I grants (of approximately 6-months' duration) are to establish the technical merit and feasibility of a proposed research effort that may lead to a commercial product or process.

Continue reading on SAM.gov

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

from $2,500 to $6,395,901 and the average $426,165.

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

Funding history and past recipients

From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research (93.855) awarded $22 billion across 13,282 grant awards, an average of $1.6 million per award.

Largest recipients, fiscal 2021 to 2025
RecipientStateAwardsAmount
Fred Hutchinson Cancer CenterWashington85$938 million
Duke UniversityNorth Carolina230$781 million
University of California, Los AngelesCalifornia138$745 million
The Johns Hopkins UniversityMaryland321$668 million
Emory UniversityGeorgia282$650 million
The Regents of the University of California, San FranciscoCalifornia291$622 million
University of WashingtonWashington274$469 million
The Washington UniversityMissouri285$459 million
The Scripps Research InstituteCalifornia88$427 million
University of North Carolina at Chapel HillNorth Carolina224$371 million
University of Pittsburgh - of the Commonwealth System of Higher EducationPennsylvania256$360 million
The Trustees of the University of PennsylvaniaPennsylvania231$353 million
University of Texas Medical Branch at GalvestonTexas117$320 million
The General Hospital CorporationMassachusetts203$310 million
The Leland Stanford Junior UniversityCalifornia158$295 million
Vanderbilt University Medical CenterTennessee130$281 million
Weill Medical College of Cornell UniversityNew York134$279 million
Yale UnivConnecticut224$275 million
Regents of the University of MinnesotaMinnesota163$268 million
Brigham & Womens Hospital IncMassachusetts139$266 million

Top states: California ($3.4 billion), Massachusetts ($2.1 billion), Washington ($1.9 billion), New York ($1.8 billion), North Carolina ($1.5 billion), Maryland ($1.2 billion), Pennsylvania ($1.1 billion), Texas ($1.0 billion), Georgia ($817 million), Illinois ($567 million).

Who usually wins

Colleges and universities received 67% of the money, nonprofits 24% and small businesses 4.8%.

Recipient typeAwardsAmountShare
Colleges and universities9,404$15 billion67%
Nonprofits2,333$5.3 billion24%
Small businesses842$1.0 billion4.8%
Other683$825 million3.8%
Businesses5$30.4 million0.1%
State and local governments11$6.1 millionless than 0.1%
Tribal governments and organizations2$837,5750%
Individuals2$354,0780%

By state

Each state below has its own page for this program, with its recipients and yearly totals.

Grants by recipient's state, fiscal 2021 to 2025
StateAwardsAmount
California1,598$3.4 billion
Massachusetts1,204$2.1 billion
Washington563$1.9 billion
New York1,154$1.8 billion
North Carolina583$1.5 billion
Maryland681$1.2 billion
Pennsylvania818$1.1 billion
Texas678$1.0 billion
Georgia468$817 million
Illinois449$567 million
Missouri371$565 million
Tennessee300$495 million
Ohio378$458 million
New Jersey202$396 million
Connecticut295$341 million
Colorado347$335 million
Minnesota227$323 million
Wisconsin224$286 million
Michigan237$277 million
Alabama160$271 million
Florida261$262 million
Virginia233$233 million
Oregon123$191 million
Indiana167$174 million
Iowa135$132 million
Utah99$132 million
Arizona103$131 million
District of Columbia80$116 million
Louisiana96$109 million
Oklahoma75$80.7 million
Kentucky83$76.6 million
New Hampshire59$71.6 million
Rhode Island135$66.5 million
South Carolina70$65.0 million
Nebraska58$60.1 million
Arkansas43$35.0 million
Vermont38$34.1 million
Maine10$34.0 million
New Mexico29$33.3 million
Kansas46$31.3 million
Montana27$19.2 million
West Virginia14$19.0 million
Nevada20$14.8 million
Hawaii12$10.0 million
Idaho14$9.2 million
Mississippi17$7.5 million
Delaware13$7.4 million
North Dakota9$4.2 million
Puerto Rico6$4.1 million
South Dakota4$3.2 million
Alaska1$2.7 million
Wyoming3$1.1 million

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