The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) aims to advance high-potential, high-impact biomedical and health research that cannot be readily accomplished through traditional research or commercial activity. ARPA-H is an HHS agency distinct from NIH. Ongoing programs cover topics like Engineering of Immune Cells Inside the Body; Antigens Predicted for Broad Viral Efficacy through Computational Experimentation; and Resilient Extended Automatic Cell Therapies.
You might be thinking: I am conducting a project that fits that general description; are there opportunities for me to collaborate with ARPA-H? Below, we’ll review ARPA-H’s program model and funding structure so you can efficiently monitor for relevant information.
Program Model
ARPA-H centers on Programs spanning a variety of biomedical research topics. Generally, these areas are not disease specific. Each program has a program manager (PM) who is responsible for defining a particular research challenge and then awarding projects to multidisciplinary teams (called “performers”), and the PM monitors performers’ progress to ensure promising projects continue to advance.
Program managers arrive at ARPA-H from academia, government, national laboratories, non-profits, and industry; serve as federal employees; and are selected for having expertise and experience to impact their respective fields and a track record of multidisciplinary project leadership. They are appointed for an initial 3-year term, renewable up to a 6-year maximum, and during that time they may oversee multiple programs. PMs do not have their own labs at ARPA-H or NIH. As PMs cycle out, new PMs inherit ongoing programs and may initiate new projects within them.
The awarded projects are funded through research and development (R&D) contracts. As at NIAID, the contract solicitations (sometimes called “innovative solutions openings”) are posted at SAM.gov, but unlike at NIAID, potential offerors are encouraged to submit abstracts to ARPA-H before submitting a proposal. The PM then provides a recommendation on whether the offeror should submit a full proposal.
ARPA-H conducts impartial, equitable, comprehensive proposal reviews based on the evaluation criteria listed in each solicitation and then selects the performers whose proposed solution meets ARPA-H’s technical, policy, and programmatic goals.
Each contract’s exact funding terms and conditions are set during negotiations before the project is awarded. The performance periods of awarded projects are determined by the scope of the research.
Many ARPA-H programs create “teaming” pages on the ARPA-H website to facilitate networking so that potential applicants can more easily find collaborators and assemble multidisciplinary teams. Programs may also host “proposers’ days,” which provide another forum for presentations and networking well in advance of a solicitation deadline.
Learn more about how programs function at General Programs FAQs, which includes explanations about letters of support, international research, and research ideas that don’t match any current programs.
What to Bookmark
The simplest way to keep up with ARPA-H is to subscribe to the ARPA-H Vitals newsletter.
If a program matches your research interests, reach out to introduce yourself and your research to the PM and monitor the program’s webpage for chances to participate in teaming, proposers’ days, and funding opportunities.
You can also read ARPA-H’s Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2024 to 2026.
If you are interested in becoming an ARPA-H PM, read What is a Program Manager?
Finally, check out the March 15, 2023 video recording Year One of ARPA-H to watch HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and ARPA-H Director Dr. Renee Wegrzyn discuss ARPA-H’s accomplishments, strategic direction, and potential to transform health.