Clinical Research to Improve the Oral Health of Older Adults (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 19 239

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 19 239

The NIH funding opportunity titled "Clinical Research to Improve the Oral Health of Older Adults (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" (PAR-19-239) supports clinical research aimed at improving dental, oral, and craniofacial (DOC) health for adults age 65 and older. The central goal is to close major knowledge gaps about why oral health problems occur and worsen with age, what prevents older adults from getting timely and appropriate care, and which prevention, health promotion, and clinical management strategies work best in real-world settings for this population. The FOA emphasizes that projects should be designed to generate meaningful scientific advances that can inform better care and better outcomes for older adults, especially by focusing on the complex mix of biological, behavioral, social, and health system factors that shape oral health in later life.

A core theme of the announcement is the importance of interdisciplinary and interprofessional approaches. NIH is signaling that progress in this area will come from combining expertise across fields rather than working in silos. Competitive applications are expected to bring together perspectives from aging research (for example, geriatrics, gerontology, cognitive and functional aging, multimorbidity, or long-term care research) with DOC-focused research (such as dentistry, periodontology, oral medicine, craniofacial biology, oral pain, salivary dysfunction, and related areas). The FOA explicitly encourages collaborations between researchers who focus on aging and those who focus on oral health, reflecting the reality that older adults often face multiple chronic conditions, medication burdens, functional limitations, and social constraints that interact with oral disease risk and the ability to obtain care.

In terms of research content, the FOA is broad but clearly oriented toward practical gaps: identifying risk factors for DOC diseases associated with aging; understanding access barriers (including affordability, transportation, workforce availability, insurance coverage, and care integration challenges); testing and refining oral health promotion and disease prevention strategies tailored to older adults; and improving clinical management approaches for DOC conditions in this age group. While the opportunity is framed around "clinical research," it is also explicit that it uses the R01 mechanism and is "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning applicants should not propose studies that meet NIH's definition of a clinical trial (for example, prospective assignment to an intervention intended to change health-related biomedical or behavioral outcomes). Instead, the FOA is positioned for rigorous non-trial clinical research that can still be highly impactful, such as observational studies, cohort and registry analyses, studies of diagnostic approaches, studies characterizing care pathways and outcomes, implementation-related observational work, and other designs that fit NIH rules while addressing clinically relevant questions.

Eligibility is intentionally expansive and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governmental entities. Eligible applicants listed 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 that are not federally recognized tribal governments; public housing authorities and Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education under those nonprofit categories); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; and small businesses. The FOA also calls out additional eligible applicant types such as 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, regional organizations, eligible federal government agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions. This broad eligibility aligns with the FOA's emphasis on real-world access barriers and community-relevant research, where partnerships with community organizations, safety-net providers, and institutions serving underserved populations can be especially important.

At the same time, the FOA places clear limits on foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic (non-U.S.) components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply as the applicant organization. However, foreign components are allowed as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, which generally means a U.S. applicant can include certain defined international elements or collaborations when they are scientifically justified and meet NIH policy requirements.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant program under the Health funding activity category, with CFDA number 93.121, and it is issued by the National Institutes of Health. The FOA was created on 2019-04-04, and the original closing date listed in the provided source data is 2022-09-06. The award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the supplied record, which typically means applicants need to consult the full FOA text and related NIH institute guidance for budget expectations, scope alignment, and any institute-specific priorities.

Overall, PAR-19-239 is best read as an NIH call for strong, clinically grounded, collaboration-heavy research that helps explain and reduce the oral health burden in older adults. It prioritizes studies that can clarify why DOC diseases and complications are common in aging, what keeps people from receiving prevention and treatment, and what non-trial clinical strategies could realistically improve outcomes for adults 65 and older, particularly when the work is built on meaningful partnerships across dentistry, aging science, and the broader health and community care ecosystem.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Clinical Research to Improve the Oral Health of Older Adults (R01 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): 93.121.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-04-04.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-09-06. (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 PAR 19 239

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