The Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE): Genomic Risk Assessment and Management Network - Clinical Sites (U01 Clinical Trial Required) | RFA HG 19 013

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA HG 19 013

The Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE): Genomic Risk Assessment and Management Network - Clinical Sites (U01 Clinical Trial Required) grant opportunity (RFA HG 19 013) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement designed to fund clinical sites that will take part in the eMERGE network. The core idea behind eMERGE is to use established biorepositories that are linked to electronic medical records (EMRs) to move genomic research closer to real-world healthcare delivery. Rather than focusing only on discovery genetics, this round emphasizes building practical, clinically usable genomic risk assessment and management tools, testing how they work in real care settings, and then sharing approaches and resources so they can be adopted more broadly.

Funded sites are expected to contribute to a coordinated network effort aimed at developing, evaluating, and disseminating tools that help clinicians and health systems use genomic information to estimate disease risk and guide patient management. Because this is a U01 cooperative agreement, awardees should anticipate substantial NIH program involvement, with milestones, collaboration across sites, and shared responsibilities typical of networked, multi-site initiatives. The FOA is explicitly marked "Clinical Trial Required," which signals that the work is expected to include prospective, human-subjects research that meets NIH's definition of a clinical trial, such as testing the impact of genomic risk reporting, decision support, or related management strategies within clinical workflows.

A major emphasis of the opportunity is improving inclusion and relevance for populations that have historically been underrepresented in biomedical research and that often face worse health outcomes. Applicants responding to this FOA are expected to recruit at least 35 patients from racial or ethnic minority populations, underserved populations, or populations that experience poorer medical outcomes. The announcement also notes a companion opportunity (RFA-HG-19-014) with a higher recruitment expectation for these populations (minimum of 75), highlighting that NIH is using multiple coordinated funding tracks to increase both participation and the generalizability of results across diverse communities and care settings.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of public and private entities. In addition to typical government and higher education applicants (state, county, city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; and private institutions of higher education), eligible applicants include federally recognized Native American tribal governments and other tribal organizations, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), and small businesses. The FOA also calls out additional eligible categories that reflect a focus on community engagement and institutions serving groups historically underrepresented in research, including 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 (AANAPISISs). It also includes faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. (foreign) entities, indicating an intent to cast a wide net for capable clinical and research partners.

Administratively, this opportunity is classified as a discretionary grant with a cooperative agreement funding instrument. It falls under the broad activity areas of education and health and is associated with CFDA numbers 93.172 and 93.279. The posting was created on 2019-05-23, and the original closing date listed is 2019-08-02. While the provided excerpt does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, the overall structure suggests a competitive selection of clinical sites that can demonstrate the needed infrastructure: access to an EMR system, linkage to a biorepository, the ability to implement and study genomic risk assessment/management within clinical operations, and the capability to recruit and retain participants from priority populations.

In practical terms, a strong applicant under this FOA would be a health system, academic medical center, or similar clinical organization (often in partnership with community and/or research groups) that can integrate genomic data with EMR-based phenotypes, deploy clinical decision support or other implementation tools, measure outcomes that matter to patients and providers, and contribute data and lessons learned back to the broader eMERGE consortium. The program is geared toward turning genomic insights into actionable clinical practice, while deliberately addressing equity and representation so that resulting tools and evidence do not only serve well-studied populations.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "The Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE): Genomic Risk Assessment and Management Network - Clinical Sites (U01 Clinical Trial Required)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.172, 93.279.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-05-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-08-02. (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 HG 19 013

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