PCORI to Fund Research on Maternal Health Inequities, Telehealth
The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) will provide funding of up to $63 million for studies on reducing maternal health inequities and up to $50 million for research on using telehealth to improve management of multiple chronic conditions.
The forthcoming Targeted PCORI Funding Announcement (PFA) offering up to $63 million for research conducted by partnerships between clinical research teams and community organizations on how best to address disparities in maternal health outcomes will support research that aims to address both clinical and social factors driving disparities. Disparities in maternal outcomes persist in the U.S., particularly for Black and American Indian/Alaska Native individuals and for people with disabilities, low incomes or rural residences.
PCORI anticipates funding three awards under this forthcoming Targeted PFA to be issued in January 2023, with each awardee having the opportunity to conduct more than one clinical effectiveness research (CER) study with their funds. This structure will enable awardees to address more than one priority issue in their community. In addition, the initiative will support training opportunities for investigators from populations and communities traditionally underrepresented and underserved in health research.
PCORI plans to release the funding announcement around different approaches to telehealth as in September this year, offering up to $50 million for studies. Research funded through this Targeted PFA will generate evidence to help the healthcare community better understand how to leverage in the future the widespread use of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic to improve care for individuals with complex chronic needs, particularly those in vulnerable populations.
More than 27 percent of people in the U.S. live with multiple chronic conditions. The burden of these conditions is higher among racial and ethnic groups such as non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native individuals, as well as people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and those who live in rural areas.
In addition, PCORI will reissue a targeted PFA on healthy aging, offering up to $25 million with a focus on optimizing physical and mental functioning for community-dwelling older adults and their caregivers across the aging continuum.
The research topics within these funding opportunities were identified with extensive input from patients and stakeholders, including organizations representing states and rural communities, federal health agencies, payers, health systems, clinicians, and others across the health and healthcare continuum.
To date, PCORI has invested $3.4 billion to fund patient-centered CER and related projects, including initiatives to implement useful findings from PCORI-funded research and on supporting the engagement of people in research projects.
The PCORI Board of Governors also approved a strategic plan to address the needs of patients, caregivers and all stakeholders in a complex and evolving healthcare landscape. The strategic plan provides a roadmap for PCORI’s future funding of patient-centered comparative clinical effectiveness research as well as stakeholder engagement, dissemination and implementation of research results, and investments to enhance the nation’s CER infrastructure.
