The Healthy Brain Initiative: Implementing Public Health Actions related to Cognitive Health, Cognitive Impairment, and Caregiving at the State and Local Levels | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the Healthy Brain Initiative funding opportunity about?

This CDC funding opportunity supports public health actions related to cognitive health, cognitive impairment, and caregiving at state and local levels. It is designed to treat cognitive health and dementia-related issues as public health priorities (not only clinical or individual concerns) and to strengthen population-level approaches through public health systems.

Which federal agency is offering this opportunity?

The opportunity is offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-CDC).

What is the official name of the grant opportunity?

The official title is: The Healthy Brain Initiative: Implementing Public Health Actions related to Cognitive Health, Cognitive Impairment, and Caregiving at the State and Local Levels.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FON)?

The Funding Opportunity Number listed is CDC RFA DP15 150502CONT16.

What does it mean that this is a "continuation opportunity"?

The notice is labeled as a continuation opportunity, which generally indicates the funding is intended to continue, maintain, or expand work that is already underway under a prior award structure. In practice, continuation postings are often not structured like brand-new open competitions and may be tied to existing project scopes or prior Healthy Brain Initiative awards.

What type of funding instrument is being used?

The funding instrument is a cooperative agreement.

How is a cooperative agreement different from a standard grant?

A cooperative agreement typically means CDC expects to have substantial involvement with awardees beyond providing funds. This can include collaborating on strategy, coordinating across jurisdictions, supporting performance measures, providing technical assistance, or helping align work with CDC priorities and the broader Healthy Brain Initiative framework.

What program area or activity category does this opportunity fall under?

The activity category listed is health.

What is the CFDA number associated with this program?

The CFDA number listed is 93.344, which aligns with CDC public health assistance focused on cognitive health and related areas.

What kinds of public health work does this initiative typically emphasize?

Based on the description provided, this initiative typically emphasizes population-level and system-level strategies such as improving awareness, strengthening public health infrastructure, integrating cognitive health into chronic disease and aging programs, improving identification and understanding of cognitive impairment at the community level, and supporting caregivers through public health approaches.

Is this opportunity focused only on dementia as a clinical issue?

No. The stated intent is to treat cognitive health and dementia-related issues as public health priorities, not only as clinical or individual concerns. The focus is on public health actions implemented through state and local public health systems.

When was this opportunity created and posted?

The opportunity was created and posted on March 10, 2016.

What is the application deadline?

The original closing date and the current closing date are both listed as April 28, 2016.

Is the award amount or maximum award (ceiling) listed?

The listing indicates an award ceiling of 0. In continuation postings, this can occur when funding levels are not presented as a fixed competitive ceiling and may depend on appropriations, existing project scopes, or internal CDC determinations.

How many awards does CDC expect to make?

The expected number of awards is not specified in the listing. This is commonly seen in continuation notices where award counts may be tied to existing recipients or other internal program decisions rather than an open competitive pool.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is labeled broadly as "Others," with a note to consult the additional eligibility text in the full announcement. This suggests eligibility may be limited to specific entity types (often state or local health departments, existing recipients, or designated partners) and may not be open to all organizations.

Does the listing indicate that all organizations can apply?

No. The combination of the "Others" eligibility label and the instruction to consult additional eligibility text implies there may be restrictions, and the continuation label further suggests it may be oriented toward ongoing or previously funded work rather than open-ended applications from any organization.

What is the overall purpose of this continuation funding?

Overall, the opportunity is best understood as CDC support for ongoing, coordinated public health actions that advance cognitive health across the lifespan, improve community-level identification and understanding of cognitive impairment, and strengthen caregiver-related supports through state and local public health systems.

How does this opportunity relate to the broader Healthy Brain Initiative framework?

The program sits within the broader Healthy Brain Initiative framework and is intended to advance public health work connected to cognitive health, cognitive impairment, and caregiving. The continuation nature suggests ongoing alignment with established Healthy Brain Initiative strategies and coordinated public health implementation.