SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 and Consequences of Alcohol Use (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA AA 21 004

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AA 21 004

The NIH funding opportunity titled "SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 and Consequences of Alcohol Use (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" (RFA-AA-21-004) is a discretionary research grant program designed to fund rapid, time-sensitive studies on how alcohol use intersects with COVID-19 outcomes and pandemic-related consequences. It uses the R21 mechanism, which is typically aimed at exploratory or developmental research that can move quickly and generate actionable findings, and it explicitly does not allow clinical trials. The core intent is to support projects where waiting for standard NIH review and award timelines would reduce the feasibility of the work or undermine the value of the results, especially if the findings could help inform near-term public health decisions during the active pandemic period.

The scientific focus is centered on two main, tightly connected problem areas. First, the FOA seeks research on whether and how alcohol misuse influences the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection and the severity of COVID-19 disease. This can include understanding alcohol-related biological, behavioral, or social pathways that may increase exposure risk, worsen immune response, or contribute to more severe clinical outcomes. Second, it targets research on the reverse direction of influence: how COVID-19 illness itself, along with pandemic-driven mitigation measures (for example, lockdowns, social distancing, job loss, reduced access to in-person care, and broader disruptions), may have changed patterns of alcohol consumption and increased risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD). In practical terms, the FOA is looking for studies that clarify whether pandemic conditions led to increases in drinking, relapse, hazardous use, or barriers to treatment, and how those changes played out across different populations and settings.

A key theme throughout the announcement is urgency and immediate public health relevance. Applications are expected to be time-sensitive in a way that makes accelerated support important, such as capturing rapidly evolving behaviors during a specific phase of the pandemic, leveraging perishable data sources, or evaluating consequences that are most informative while the pandemic context is still unfolding. The goal is not just to produce general knowledge about alcohol and infectious disease, but to generate findings that can directly inform ongoing responses to COVID-19, including prevention messaging, service delivery strategies, and planning for alcohol-related harms linked to pandemic conditions.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governments. Eligible applicants include state, county, city, township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; other Native American tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education when applying in that category); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicant types such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), along with faith-based and community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, and U.S. territories or possessions.

At the same time, there are notable restrictions related to foreign participation. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities (foreign organizations and foreign institutions) are not eligible to apply as applicant organizations, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. However, the FOA allows "foreign components" as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, meaning a U.S. applicant may include certain international elements of the project when justified and compliant with NIH policy, even though the primary applicant organization must be domestic.

Administrative details provided in the source data indicate this opportunity is administered by the National Institutes of Health under CFDA 93.273, with an original closing date of August 17, 2021, and a creation date of February 5, 2021. While the excerpt does not list an award ceiling or expected number of awards, the emphasis on time-sensitive, high-impact questions suggests the program was intended to quickly mobilize research capacity to answer pressing questions at the intersection of alcohol use and COVID-19, with results that could be used promptly by public health leaders, healthcare systems, and community organizations.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 and Consequences of Alcohol Use (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.273.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-02-05.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-08-17. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA AA 21 004

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