Newborn Screening Data Repository and Technical Assistance Program | HRSA 18 080

Opportunity Information: Apply for HRSA 18 080

The Newborn Screening Data Repository and Technical Assistance Program is a federal discretionary funding opportunity from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, administered through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). It is offered as a cooperative agreement, which means the awardee is expected to work closely with HRSA during the project rather than operating entirely independently. The program is designed to strengthen how newborn screening is carried out across the United States, with a particular emphasis on improving state and local public health capacity, building a robust data and coordination infrastructure, and spreading practical expertise to the people who run and rely on newborn screening systems.

At its core, the program is meant to help states and local public health agencies do a better job of identifying infants and children who have, or are at risk for, heritable disorders. That includes improving and expanding access to screening services themselves, as well as the counseling and health care services that are needed once a potential condition is detected. The focus is not only on running tests, but also on ensuring families can get accurate information, timely referrals, and appropriate medical follow-up. By improving these public health capabilities, the program supports earlier detection and intervention for congenital, genetic, and metabolic disorders where delays can lead to serious and sometimes preventable harm.

A second major purpose is workforce and stakeholder support: the program calls for educating health care practitioners and training newborn screening laboratory personnel. This includes both foundational education in newborn screening practices and hands-on training in relevant and emerging technologies used to detect congenital, genetic, and metabolic disorders. The intent is to keep professionals current as screening panels, testing methods, and clinical guidance evolve, and to help standardize and raise the quality of practice across different jurisdictions and laboratories.

The third central goal is to establish, maintain, and operate a system that can assess and coordinate follow-up and treatment for conditions identified through newborn screening. In practice, this points to a structured approach for tracking outcomes after a screen, closing the loop between the initial laboratory finding and confirmatory testing, specialty evaluation, long-term management, and treatment. A key theme is coordination: newborn screening only achieves its public health purpose when positive or abnormal results reliably lead to timely next steps, and when the system can evaluate whether those steps actually happened and what outcomes they produced.

To meet these goals, the recipient is expected to provide technical assistance to a broad set of newborn screening stakeholders, including state and local public health agencies, health care professionals, laboratory personnel, and others involved in implementing state-based newborn screening. The announcement indicates multiple avenues for delivering that support, such as developing practical resources and tools, offering education and training to states, supporting policy initiatives that improve program performance and consistency, conducting disorder surveillance activities, and strengthening evidence-based data collection and evaluation. The emphasis on a data repository and technical assistance suggests the awardee functions as a central support and coordination hub, helping states collect, use, and learn from data in ways that improve screening quality and follow-up systems.

In terms of the published funding details, this opportunity is identified as HRSA 18 080 and is associated with CFDA number 93.110 under the health funding activity category. It was posted March 22, 2018, with an original application closing date of May 22, 2018. HRSA anticipated making one award, with an award ceiling of $1,500,000. Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others," with additional eligibility specifics referenced in the full notice. Overall, the opportunity funds a single recipient to operate at a national or multi-state level, supporting state-based newborn screening programs through data infrastructure, training, technical guidance, and evaluation-focused assistance that strengthens screening and follow-up for heritable disorders.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Newborn Screening Data Repository and Technical Assistance Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.110.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 22, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 22, 2018. (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 $1,500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for HRSA 18 080

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