BETHESDA, MD, USA (Press Release) -

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced today that applications for a total of $1.5 billion in grants funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are now available. The grants will fund scientific research, construction and improvement of research facilities, and the purchase of scientific equipment.

"NIH is extremely grateful to President Obama and the Congress for recognizing both the economic and health impacts of biomedical and behavioral research," said Acting Director Raynard S. Kington M.D., Ph.D. "The science funded by the Recovery Act will stimulate the national economy, and have a profound impact on people's health for many years to come."

The NIH will allocate the Recovery Act funds as follows:

-- At least $200 million in Challenge Grants to support research on topics that address specific scientific and health research challenges in biomedical and behavioral research that would benefit from significant 2-year jumpstart funds;

-- $1 billion in construction grants to help build new or improve existing research facilities and help grow the economy;

-- $300 million in shared instrumentation grants to facilitate the purchase of research equipment that will enable scientists and researchers to complete their critical work.

For more information and grant applications, visit http://grants.nih.gov/recovery.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical Research Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

[ PRESS RELEASE ]