Pragmatic Trials of Managing Multimorbidity in Alzheimers Disease (R01 Clinical Trial Required) | RFA AG 18 028

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA AG 18 028

The grant opportunity titled "Pragmatic Trials of Managing Multimorbidity in Alzheimers Disease (R01 Clinical Trial Required)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-AG-18-028) is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) discretionary grant that supports health research under CFDA 93.866. It specifically calls for R01 applications that will run pragmatic clinical trials focused on improving how clinicians and health systems treat comorbid conditions that commonly occur alongside Alzheimers disease and related dementias (ADRD). The emphasis on a "pragmatic" design means the trials are expected to be grounded in real-world care settings and routine clinical workflows, aiming for findings that are directly usable in everyday practice rather than tightly controlled, highly selective efficacy studies.

At its core, this funding announcement is about multimorbidity, the reality that many people living with ADRD also have other chronic medical conditions that interact with dementia, complicate treatment choices, and can worsen outcomes for patients and caregivers. The FOA encourages studies that test practical treatment strategies for these co-occurring conditions in ways that improve effectiveness and decision-making in typical care environments. In other words, the goal is not just to study dementia in isolation, but to figure out how to manage the full clinical picture when dementia coexists with other common illnesses, and to generate evidence that can change clinical practice.

The award mechanism is an R01, which generally supports substantial, multi-year research projects, and the FOA explicitly requires a clinical trial. That requirement matters because the application must be built around a trial design, including clear intervention strategies, comparators, outcomes, and an implementation approach suitable for pragmatic testing. While the source text does not list specific comorbidities, the intent is to target conditions that frequently cluster with ADRD and where treatment choices may need to be adapted because of cognitive impairment, polypharmacy, functional decline, safety risks, adherence issues, or caregiver involvement. Projects funded through this announcement would typically be expected to measure outcomes that matter in real care settings, such as clinical control of the comorbid condition, adverse events, hospitalizations, quality of life, function, caregiver burden, care utilization, or similar practical endpoints.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S. public entities, academic institutions, nonprofits, and private-sector organizations. Eligible applicants listed include state, county, city or township governments; 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; tribal organizations other than federally recognized governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education in those categories); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other unspecified eligible organizations. The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicant categories, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, regional organizations, U.S. territories or possessions, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). This breadth signals an interest in diverse settings and populations, and it leaves room for multi-site collaborations that include community providers, health systems, and organizations serving groups that are often underrepresented in clinical research.

The opportunity was created on December 15, 2017, with an original closing date of March 26, 2018. The source information does not specify an award ceiling or expected number of awards in the fields provided, so those details would normally need to be confirmed in the full FOA text or related NIH documentation. Overall, the announcement is best understood as an NIH effort to push the field toward practical, actionable evidence on how to treat common coexisting health problems in people with ADRD, using clinical trials designed to reflect the realities of everyday healthcare delivery.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pragmatic Trials of Managing Multimorbidity in Alzheimers Disease (R01 Clinical Trial Required)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-12-15.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-03-26. (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 AG 18 028

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