Apply for Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) Funding
In the United States, drug overdose deaths increased to historic levels in 2021 with 106,699 drug overdose deaths. Nearly 300 lives are lost to drugs each day. Overdose Data to Action (OD2A) focuses on the complex and changing nature of the drug overdose epidemic and highlights the need for an interdisciplinary/multisectoral, comprehensive, and cohesive public health approach to reduce drug overdoses, deaths, and related harms.
Two new OD2A funding announcements were designed to reflect the evolving epidemiology, identified gaps in prevention activities, and lessons learned from previous OD2A cooperative agreements about how best to leverage what states and localities can do to address the overdose crisis. OD2A is underpinned by a data-to-action framework (right) that reinforces the use of surveillance and other data to inform and drive prevention efforts and policies, with an emphasis on addressing health equity and reducing health disparities.
In 2023, CDC will build on this program with two funding opportunities, one designed for states and one designed specifically for localities and territories, to help ensure broad resources and support to respond to the evolving overdose crisis at all levels of government. Both awards will support 5-year cooperative agreements to expand and strengthen overdose surveillance and prevention efforts to reduce fatal and non-fatal overdoses involving opioids and/or stimulants and polysubstance use.
Areas of focus:
- Prevention: Evidence-based interventions aligned with shifts in the epidemic, including changes in the illicit drug supply and a rise in stimulant and polysubstance use.
- Surveillance: Evidence-based interventions to enhance and expand the infrastructure to track nonfatal and fatal overdoses and identify emerging drug threats.
- Evaluation: To refine understanding of what is effective and use data to continuously improve prevention interventions.
- Health equity: To address disparities in overdose by focusing on people disproportionately affected by overdose and underserved by treatment for substance use disorder and harm reduction services, people with lived experience, people experiencing incarceration or recent release from incarceration, and people experiencing homelessness.
The funding opportunities emphasize surveillance strategies and the promotion of evidence‐based and evidence-informed interventions that have an immediate impact on reducing overdose morbidity and mortality, with a focus on opioids, stimulants, and polysubstance use (if addressed in combination with opioids and stimulants).
CDC has two notices of funding opportunities (NOFO) available on www.grants.gov open from March 7, 2023 – May 8, 2023:
- Overdose Data to Action in States (OD2A-S) – To support state health departments to conduct overdose-related surveillance and implement prevention activities to decrease fatal and non-fatal overdoses and related harms.
- Overdose Data to Action: Limiting Overdose through Collaborative Actions in Localities (OD2A: LOCAL) – To support local city and county health departments and territories to develop overdose-related surveillance infrastructure and implement prevention activities to decrease fatal and non-fatal overdoses and related harms.
CDC’s Technical Assistance
CDC will continue to support funded jurisdictions through innovative support mechanisms, such as the Division of Overdose Prevention Technical Assistance Center (TAC). Jurisdictions have leveraged direct connections with subject matter experts as well as peers via the TAC to expand and scale best practices across surveillance and prevention. The TAC will continue to support and complement jurisdictional efforts across both Overdose Data to Action funding opportunities.
Deadlines & Decision Dates
| March 7, 2023 | Application period opens at 9:00 a.m. ET |
| March 27, 2023 | OD2A-S letter of intent to apply due at 11:59 p.m. ET |
| April 6, 2023 | OD2A: LOCAL letter of intent to apply due at 11:59 p.m. ET |
| May 8, 2023 | Application period closes at 11:59 p.m. ET |
| August 2023 | Awards are announced |
| September 1, 2023 | Project year begins |
