What We Do

Pilot Grants

We equip early-career researchers with the tools to explore research opportunities, expand networks, and lay the groundwork for future economic research.

We are making investments to support the next generation of substance use researchers. Through CHERISH pilot grants, we support early-career researchers and trainees become proficient with health economic methods and lead innovative economic studies of substance use disorder and HCV and HIV treatment interventions.

Overview

CHERISH works with early-career researchers to ensure that pilot studies on substance use research are responsive to the rapidly changing health policy landscape.

Our pilot grant curriculum is geared towards supporting recipients through each phase of their research project. Funded researchers receive curated training on economic research and dissemination, peer-to-peer mentorship, and opportunities to connect with CHERISH Research Affiliates and investigators across the United States.

Recipients can expand their research scope by investigating innovative methodologies or applications and collecting preliminary data to inform future grant proposals. Past grantees have acknowledged the support of the CHERISH pilot grant program in their scientific publications, national conference presentations, and grant submissions.

 

Applications for 2024-2025 (Now Closed)

Topics of Interest

CHERISH seeks to fund health economic research projects on healthcare utilization, health outcomes, and health-related behaviors.

In this cycle, we particularly encourage health economic research proposals relating to one or more of the following special topics of interest, but we will consider proposals on other topics that are also consistent with our mission:

  • Health economic aspects of achieving the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2030 goals of HCV elimination and/or ending the HIV epidemic in people who use drugs.
  • The relationships between social determinants of health, as established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Healthy People 2030 initiative, and health economic outcomes in people who use drugs .

Examples of research on these special topics of interest include the following, but we encourage applicants to propose additional research areas:

  • Cost and reimbursement of enhanced telehealth strategies to support retention and adherence to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among people who use stimulants.
  • Economic evaluation of implementation strategies, including sustainability and scalability, of offering long-acting injectable HIV treatment to people who use drugs.
  • The economic impact of housing policies on the utilization of substance use services and treatment of related infections.
  • The economic impact of access to transportation to substance use and harm reduction services on health services utilization by geographic setting (e.g., rural versus urban).

Application Timeline

  • Letter of Intent Submission: January 12, 2024
  • Proposal Submission: February 23, 2024
  • Proposal Review: April 2024
  • Funds Awarded: May 2024
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Frequently Asked Questions

Eligibility is based on being a trainee of a CHERISH investigator/affiliate or being nominated by one. How does the nomination process usually look like?

You do not need to have a sponsor in place to apply or submit a letter of intent (LOI). After reviewing your LOI, we can connect you to a potential sponsor within CHERISH. If you are not already connected to a CHERISH Research Affiliate or someone from our network, please reach out to us.

What should I ask from a sponsor (e.g., letter of support or co-authorship)?

At the minimum, a sponsor can review your proposal and acknowledge in a letter of support that your project is consistent with NIH’s priorities for health economics and a good fit for the CHERISH pilot grant. They do not need specify a time, FTE, or co-authorship commitment.

Can I apply with a global health project, or should it be a domestic project?

You can propose research that has a global perspective. However, the institution must be U.S.-based.

More FAQs

Pilot Grants in Action

07/26/23 Profile Feature

CHERISH Welcomes Pilot Grant Recipients to Advance the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders, HCV, and HIV

Meet the ninth cohort of early-career investigators from the states of California, Texas, and Washington. CHERISH awarded each investigator up to $20,000 for a pilot study that focuses on conducting health economics research in substance use, hepatitis C virus (HCV), and HIV. This year, CHERISH also encouraged applicants to integrate drug overdose prevention, the syndemics […]

01/20/23 Profile Feature

Catching Up with Pilot Grant Recipient: Rachel Epstein

Rachel Epstein is a clinician-scientist with demonstrated experience in analyzing large datasets to inform hepatitis C (HCV), HIV, and substance use disorder interventions. A CHERISH pilot grantee in 2019, she worked closely with her co-investigators Benjamin Linas, CHERISH Population Data and Modeling Core director, and Shashi Kapadia, a CHERISH Research Affiliate and an infectious diseases physician at Weill […]

07/27/22 Profile Feature

Five Researchers Receive CHERISH Pilot Awards to Advance the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders, HCV, and HIV

The Center for Health Economics of Treatment Interventions for Substance Use Disorder, HCV, and HIV (CHERISH) is proud to recognize five early-stage researchers who will receive up to $20,000 in pilot grant funding between 2022 and 2023. Through the CHERISH pilot grant, researchers can investigate innovative methodologies or applications, collect preliminary data to inform external […]

11/29/21 Profile Feature

Catching Up with Pilot Grant Recipients Ali Jalali, Austin Kilaru, and Hao Zhang

Every spring, the Center for Health Economics of Treatment Interventions for Substance Use Disorder, HCV, and HIV (CHERISH) awards competitive pilot grants to investigators interested in developing health economic research in our areas of interest, with a focus on junior investigators and trainees. Funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, CHERISH pilot grants provide these investigators […]

11/11/21 Research Highlights

The Impact of Recreational Cannabis Laws and Cannabis Use Disorder Among Pregnant Patients

To date, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists advises pregnant patients not to use cannabis because of the increased risks of health complications to the pregnant individual and the newborn. However, as states expand access to recreational or medical cannabis, there is growing evidence of increased cannabis use and positive perceptions of cannabis among pregnant patients. […]

07/27/21 Profile Feature

Pilot Grant Recipients Receive Funding to Examine Health Disparities Related to the Treatment of Substance Use Disorders, HCV, and HIV

Shoshana Aronowitz, PhD, MSHP, FNP-BC Follow Shoshana Aronowitz, PhD, MSHP, FNP-BC, on Twitter @shoshiaronowitz. Shoshana Aronowitz is a family nurse practitioner, community-engaged health services researcher, and assistant professor in the Department of Family and Community Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. Her research examines innovative delivery models to promote equitable access to substance […]

07/23/21 Research Highlights

Prescription Opioids Dispensed to Patients with Cancer with Bone Metastasis: 2011-2017

In the past decade, opioid prescribing in the United States has steadily decreased as federal and state officials implemented strict regulations on prescription opioids to address the opioid crisis. The downward trend sparked concerns of undertreating chronic pain and prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to formally clarify that the 2016 CDC […]

06/28/21 Research Highlights

Hepatitis C Treatment by Non-specialist Providers in the Direct-acting Antiviral Era

Direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs), highly effective treatments for hepatitis C virus infection (HCV), transformed HCV therapy and made it easier for non-specialist providers to prescribe HCV treatment. Despite this simplification, many insurers include being a specialist as part of prior authorization requirements for DAA treatment. CHERISH Research Affiliate and former pilot grant recipient Shashi N. […]

06/16/21 Research Highlights

Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Mandates Affect Use of Opioids to Treat Acute, Severe Pain

Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP) have been crucial tools to address unsafe opioid prescribing. High rates of prescribing stoked the flames of the opioid crisis in the early 2000s, but opioid prescriptions have steadily decreased over the past decade. Unfortunately, opioid-related deaths have continued to rise each year. Many states have enacted comprehensive mandates that all clinicians consult the PDMP […]

08/31/20 Research Highlights

Patients Get More Opioids Than They Need After Knee Arthroscopy

In our new study in BMJ Open, we show that in 2015-2019 more than 70% of U.S. opioid-naive patients received an opioid prescription after knee arthroscopy. They received an average of 40 tablets, despite recent studies showing most patients end up taking less than 5 tablets. The take-home message? Despite recent attention to opioid stewardship, we find wide variation […]

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