Medical Library Assistance (93.879)
Medical Library Assistance (Assistance Listing 93.879) is run by the National Institutes of Health, part of the Department of Health and Human Services. It awarded $353 million in 391 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $902,940 per award on average. 47 funding opportunities are open or forecast now.
The typical award was $506,718. Half of the 391 awards fell between $238,373 and $1.3 million, and they ranged from $2 to $10.9 million.
- Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$353 million
- Grant awards391
- Typical award$506,718
- Awarded in FY 2025$78.9 million
- Size rank454 of 1,823
- Type of assistanceProject grants
Key findings
- Annual funding rose from $66.3 million in fiscal 2021 to $78.9 million in fiscal 2025.
- It is the 454th largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
- The 20 largest recipients received 55% of the money.
- Awards went to recipients in 41 states and territories.
What the program funds
To meet a growing need for investigators trained in biomedical informatics research and data science by training qualified pre- and post-doctoral candidates; to conduct research in biomedical informatics, bioinformatics and related computer, information and data sciences; to facilitate management of electronic health records and clinical research data; to prepare scholarly works in biomedicine and health; to advance biocomputing and bioinformatics through participation in Federal initiatives relating to biomedical informatics, bioinformatics and biomedical computing; and to stimulate and foster scientific and technological innovation through cooperative research development carried out between small business concerns and research institutions, through Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grants.
Open and forecast opportunities
- NIH Research Software Engineer (RSE) Award (R50 Clinical Trials Not Allowed)
- Personal Health Informatics for Delivering Actionable Insights to Individuals (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
- Intervention Research to Improve Native American Health (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)
- NLM Institutional Grants for Research Training in Biomedical Informatics, Data Science, and AI (T15 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH, CDC and FDA Small Business Innovation Research Grant (Parent SBIR [R43/R44] Clinical Trial Optional)
- NIH Small Business Technology Transfer Grant (Parent STTR [R41/R42] Clinical Trial Optional)
- Computational Approaches to Curation at Scale for Biomedical Research Assets (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Mentored Quantitative Research Development Award (Parent K25 Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Quantitative Research Development Award (Parent K25 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Pathway to Independence Award (Parent K99/R00 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Pathway to Independence Award (Parent K99/R00 Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Required)
- Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Change of Recipient Organization (Type 7 Parent Clinical Trial Optional)
- Successor-in-Interest (Type 6 Parent Clinical Trial Optional)
- NIH Support for Conferences and Scientific Meetings (Parent R13 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) for Undergraduate-Focused Institutions (R15 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Small Research Grant Program (Parent R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Project Grant (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Project Grant (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Required)
- NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
- NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Required)
- Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (Parent F31)
Rules from the program listing
Who can apply
Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the project director/principal investigator (PD/PI) is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support. See Beneficiary Eligibility below for further details.
What the money can and cannot pay for
Specific use determined at NOFO level.
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
$20,000 to $2,183,160 (range); $387,852 – average cost for Research Grant (R01); $143,293 – average cost for Information Resource Grant (G08); $48,748 – average total cost for Scholarly Works Grant (G13)
Funding history and past recipients
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Medical Library Assistance (93.879) awarded $353 million across 391 grant awards, an average of $902,940 per award.
Who usually wins
Colleges and universities received 80% of the money, nonprofits 13% and small businesses 3.0%.
| Recipient type | Awards | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colleges and universities | 298 | $282 million | 80% |
| Nonprofits | 54 | $44.2 million | 13% |
| Other | 24 | $16.7 million | 4.7% |
| Small businesses | 15 | $10.7 million | 3.0% |
By state
30 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.
| State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| California | 58 | $50.9 million |
| Massachusetts | 37 | $43.8 million |
| Pennsylvania | 41 | $31.0 million |
| New York | 34 | $30.4 million |
| Texas | 15 | $19.2 million |
| Illinois | 15 | $14.7 million |
| Maryland | 10 | $14.1 million |
| Washington | 13 | $13.7 million |
| Connecticut | 10 | $13.3 million |
| Utah | 4 | $13.2 million |
| Ohio | 15 | $10.6 million |
| South Carolina | 8 | $9.7 million |
| Tennessee | 15 | $9.6 million |
| Michigan | 12 | $8.7 million |
| Oregon | 7 | $7.7 million |
| Colorado | 10 | $7.0 million |
| Iowa | 1 | $5.7 million |
| Wisconsin | 5 | $5.4 million |
| North Carolina | 11 | $5.3 million |
| Florida | 9 | $4.9 million |
| Indiana | 7 | $4.4 million |
| New Hampshire | 4 | $4.2 million |
| Arizona | 5 | $4.0 million |
| New Jersey | 6 | $3.7 million |
| Missouri | 5 | $3.7 million |
| Georgia | 6 | $3.1 million |
| Kentucky | 5 | $2.7 million |
| District of Columbia | 2 | $2.3 million |
| Virginia | 3 | $1.5 million |
| Minnesota | 3 | $1.3 million |
| New Mexico | 1 | $764,372 |
| Louisiana | 1 | $525,792 |
| Delaware | 1 | $450,414 |
| Alabama | 2 | $355,288 |
| Hawaii | 1 | $306,238 |
| Kansas | 2 | $296,677 |
| Oklahoma | 1 | $135,557 |
| Rhode Island | 1 | $100,638 |
| Maine | 1 | $99,957 |
| Arkansas | 1 | $99,918 |
| Montana | 1 | $18,153 |