AHRQ intends to publish a new funding opportunity announcement using the R01 mechanism to support novel, high-impact studies evaluating health system and healthcare professional responsiveness to COVID-19. This Notice is being provided to allow potential applicants sufficient time to develop responsive applications.
The health systems research community should prepare to submit applications to AHRQ to fund critical research focused on evaluating topics such as innovations and challenges encountered in the rapid expansion of telemedicine in response to COVID-19, effects on quality, safety, and value of health system response to COVID-19, and the role of primary care practices and professionals during the COVID-19 epidemic. AHRQ is particularly interested in understanding how digital health innovations contributed to health system and healthcare professional innovation and challenges and solutions to meeting the needs of vulnerable populations including older adults, people living with multiple chronic conditions, rural communities, and uninsured and underinsured populations. AHRQ will encourage multimethod, rapid-cycle research with the ability to produce and disseminate findings as early as 6 months. AHRQ expects to invest up to $5M in FY2020 funds to support this initiative and potentially more pending supplemental funding. AHRQ is working to publish the FOA in early May 2020 with submissions due in June 2020.
Current AHRQ grantees should also see AHRQ’s Notice of Intent to allow revision supplements to existing AHRQ grants and cooperative agreements to address health system responsiveness to COVID-19.