Combating Opioid Overdose through Community Level Intervention | COOCLI1

FAQs: Combating Opioid Overdose through Community-Level Intervention (ONDCP)

What is the purpose of the Combating Opioid Overdose through Community-Level Intervention opportunity?

This federal funding opportunity is designed to strengthen local and regional responses to the opioid overdose epidemic by supporting hands-on, community-based work that combines implementation with rigorous evaluation. A key goal is to generate practical, real-world evidence about what works, especially in areas experiencing the highest rates of fatal and non-fatal opioid overdoses.

Which federal office is offering this funding?

The opportunity is offered by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) within the Executive Office of the President.

What type of award is this?

The planned award is a cooperative agreement, meaning ONDCP (and related efforts at CDC referenced in the notice) is expected to remain engaged with the recipient and the work is expected to align with related federal overdose response activities.

How many awards were expected to be made?

ONDCP planned to make one cooperative agreement award.

What is the project period for the award?

The planned project period is one year, beginning around September 2019.

What is the maximum funding amount available under this opportunity?

The anticipated award ceiling is $4,500,000.

What funding category and CFDA number are associated with this opportunity?

The award was posted as a discretionary grant in the health funding category under CFDA 95.007.

What is the overall strategy ONDCP is trying to advance through this grant?

The notice emphasizes strengthening coordination across systems that often operate separately, particularly public health and law enforcement. The intent is to support unified, comprehensive community responses rather than fragmented initiatives, while also building credible findings that can be shared and potentially replicated.

What are the main required performance areas or components of work?

The supported work is described across several linked performance areas:

• Research and analysis of existing community-based overdose efforts and evidence-based strategies known to reduce opioid-related overdose deaths.
• Implementation or strengthening of new or ongoing community programs using evidence-based approaches, with emphasis on high-burden regions.
• Evaluation of the community efforts to determine whether they reduce opioid-involved overdoses and related harms.
• Intentional support for cross-sector collaboration between public safety and public health agencies.
• Technical assistance to help subaward communities with program rollout, evaluation methods, and reporting requirements.

Does the opportunity encourage subawards to communities?

Yes. ONDCP signaled that proposals would be viewed more favorably if they push resources outward by issuing subawards.

Is there a preferred number of communities to receive subawards?

The notice indicates priority would be given to proposals that make funding available to at least eight communities.

Are applicants required to focus on certain geographic areas?

The work is intended to concentrate resources in heavily impacted, high-burden regions of the country experiencing the highest levels of fatal and non-fatal opioid overdoses.

How important is evaluation in this program?

Evaluation is a required element. The recipient must support evaluation of implemented community efforts to assess whether they reduce opioid-involved overdoses and related harms, with the broader goal of producing credible, shareable findings.

What does "community-level intervention" mean in the context of this opportunity?

Based on the notice, it refers to hands-on, community-based work that implements or strengthens overdose reduction programs in real-world settings, paired with evaluation and cross-sector coordination to improve outcomes.

What kinds of cross-sector partnerships does ONDCP want to strengthen?

A central theme is improving coordination between public health and law enforcement (public safety), since stronger alignment between these sectors is described as essential to reducing overdose deaths and other opioid-related harms.

How does this opportunity relate to HIDTA?

The program specifically connects to the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program. HIDTA partnerships are described as a core structural requirement, not an optional collaboration, and the notice references collaboration through the Overdose Response Strategy initiative involving CDC and HIDTA.

Is partnership with a regional HIDTA program required?

Yes. Partnership with a regional HIDTA program is a non-negotiable eligibility condition.

What documentation is required to show the HIDTA partnership?

Applications had to include a letter of support or commitment from the participating HIDTA, signed by the sponsoring HIDTA Director, confirming the partnership and engagement.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is limited to legally recognized public or private nonprofit institutions and organizations. The notice explicitly includes institutions of higher education (public and/or private) and private nonprofit hospitals.

What experience or capabilities must applicants demonstrate?

Applicants must demonstrate expert knowledge and substantial experience in conducting research and analysis. They must also show strong experience developing, improving, or scaling programs that reduce opioid overdoses using strategic, evidence-based methods.

What is meant by "evidence-based strategies" in this opportunity?

The notice indicates the recipient should analyze evidence-based strategies known to reduce opioid-related overdose deaths and then use those evidence-based approaches to implement or strengthen community programs.

What does the cooperative agreement structure imply for the recipient?

It implies a close working relationship in which ONDCP remains engaged with the recipient, and the funded work is expected to align with and be informed by related federal overdose response activities (including related efforts referenced at CDC).

Is technical assistance to communities part of the required work?

Yes. Alongside implementation and evaluation, the recipient is expected to provide technical assistance to help subaward communities with program rollout, evaluation methods, and reporting requirements.

What was the application submission deadline and time zone?

Applicants needed to submit early enough to receive a successful Grants.gov validation message by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on September 3, 2019.

Were applicants required to register in Grants.gov?

Yes. Applicants were required to be registered in Grants.gov before submission.

What does it mean to receive a successful Grants.gov validation message?

Based on the notice, the application had to be submitted early enough so that Grants.gov could process the submission and return a successful validation message by the stated deadline time.

Why does the notice emphasize coordination between public health and law enforcement?

The opportunity is built around the idea that public health and law enforcement often operate separately. The program frames stronger alignment between these sectors as essential to reducing overdose deaths and other harms linked to opioid misuse.

What is the intended outcome beyond immediate community interventions?

Beyond near-term community action, the program is intended to produce credible, practical findings about what works in real-world communities, supported by evaluation, so results can be shared and potentially replicated.

How does the opportunity fit into the broader federal response described in the notice?

The notice situates the program within the broader federal response to the opioid crisis, including recognition of overdose as the leading cause of injury death in the United States and CDC-reported opioid-involved deaths for 2018. The grant design emphasizes concentrated resources, required collaboration, and measurement of results.