Every funding period, NIH announces topics approved for budgets greater than $256,580 for Phase I SBIR/STTR awards, and greater than $1,710,531 for Phase II, presenting a lucrative opportunity for businesses.

That being said, NIH does strongly encourage applicants to get in touch with program officials before submitting any award budget that goes over these amounts.  

Organizations offering budget waiver topics for the 2020-2021 funding period, and inclusive of NIH Budget 2020 include: 

  • National Cancer Institute (NCI)
  • National Center For Advancing Translational Sciences  (NCATS)
  • National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
  • National Eye Institute (NEI)
  • National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
  • National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
  • National Institute on Aging (NIA)
  • National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
  • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
  • National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
  • National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
  • National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
  • National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
  • National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
  • National Library of Medicine (NLM)
  • Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI), Office of Research Infrastructure Programs (ORIP)

The topics these organizations are funding ask for the most innovative approaches a small business can offer.

Many of the waiver topics involve development of technologies, such as imaging for the NCI, biomedical technologies for the NHLBI, early diagnosis of aging-related diseases for NIA, and mobile health for NIMHD.

Robotics is a large component of NIA waiver funding, with money set aside to aid in the development of robotics applications to promote social interaction and reduce loneliness among the elderly, motivate exercise, and enhance capabilities to preserve independence and remain in home as seen in the NIH Budget 2020.

NIBIB is funding exciting areas like exploratory research on the next generation of therapeutic and diagnostic devices, micro and nano systems, and regenerative medicine, all of which stand to leave a legacy for any business who can use this funding to innovate something life-changing.

If these topics or others are of interest to you, we can help. Please call (650) 937-9164, or contact us here