Increasing PrEP Use Among Disproportionately Affected Populations in the United States | RFA PS 23 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA PS 23 001

The grant opportunity titled "Increasing PrEP Use Among Disproportionately Affected Populations in the United States" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA PS 23 001) is a CDC cooperative agreement designed to test and evaluate real-world strategies that can increase the use of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among Black women receiving care in women's health clinics across the United States. The central goal is not simply to promote awareness, but to rigorously measure whether specific implementation approaches actually lead to more Black women starting PrEP, taking it as prescribed, and staying on it over time. In other words, the funding focuses on practical, clinic-based solutions and whether those solutions translate into measurable improvements in PrEP initiation, adherence, and persistence.

This opportunity is grounded in the public health reality that PrEP is a proven, safe, and highly effective biomedical prevention tool, yet it remains under-prescribed and under-utilized among Black women in the U.S., despite disproportionate HIV impacts in many communities. The NOFO targets women's health care settings because they are often where women already seek routine and preventive services, including contraception counseling, pregnancy testing, STI screening and treatment, prenatal care, and post-partum care. By embedding PrEP access and supportive services into these existing touchpoints, clinics may be able to reduce barriers that commonly limit PrEP uptake, such as lack of provider offering, fragmented referrals, stigma, time constraints, and difficulty navigating follow-up care.

A defining feature of this funding announcement is its use of an implementation science framework. That means applicants are expected not only to run an intervention, but also to study how and why it works (or does not) in everyday clinic environments. The evaluation is intended to identify the factors that contribute to success, such as workflow changes, provider training models, patient navigation, decision-support tools, culturally responsive counseling approaches, or strategies to normalize PrEP discussions in women's health visits. At the same time, the project is meant to document challenges and barriers encountered during rollout, which can include staffing capacity, clinic leadership buy-in, competing clinical priorities, insurance and payment issues, patient mistrust, or difficulties with ongoing monitoring and follow-up. The end product is meant to generate evidence that can be replicated or adapted by other clinics and health systems.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary funding opportunity funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with the award mechanism being a cooperative agreement. A cooperative agreement typically signals that the funder (here, CDC) expects to have substantial involvement during the project period, often through technical assistance, collaboration on evaluation expectations, or participation in project oversight and learning activities. The funding activity category is Health, and the CFDA number listed is 93.941.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of public and private entities. Eligible applicants include state, county, and 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; other Native American tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations both with and without 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions where specified); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. This wide eligibility suggests the CDC is open to applications from health departments, academic partners, community-based organizations, clinic networks, and other entities capable of working directly with women's health clinical settings and conducting a strong evaluation.

The NOFO was created on January 12, 2023, with an original application closing date of March 20, 2023. Applications were required to be submitted electronically by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the due date. The maximum award amount (award ceiling) is listed as $2,000,000, and the opportunity anticipated making one award. With a single expected award, the competition is structured to support one large, focused project intended to produce clear findings about which implementation strategies are most effective for increasing PrEP uptake and sustained use among Black women in women's health clinic environments.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - ERA in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Increasing PrEP Use Among Disproportionately Affected Populations in the United States" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.941.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 12, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 20, 2023 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 pm ET on the listed application due date.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $2,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• 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.

Apply for RFA PS 23 001

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: