Current vaccinations and therapeutics, involving injection of a liquid form via needle and syringe, place a tremendous burden on the healthcare system and supply chain, especially during a pandemic. Beyond the Needle is developing alternative technologies that aim to transform the paradigm making vaccines and therapeutics easier to administer and more widely available, without the need for needles, syringes, vials, and cold-chain distribution burdens.
A world in which needles are no longer the default choice for vaccination or drug delivery.
Transform vaccination and other drug delivery by helping bring new technologies into market that offer alternative routes of administration so that needles and syringes are no longer the default modality, making them easier to administer, in a broader range of settings, without the need for needles, syringes, vials, and cold-chain transport. Beyond the Needle specifically aims to:
Help bring new technologies into the market that will replace the needle and syringe as the default modality. This includes technologies that:
It is open to both academia and industries as long as the respondents meet all the requirements described in the EZ-BAA and the special instructions .
Any entity can submit proposal via the EZ-BAA portal as long as they are registered with www.SAM.gov.
Yes. Applicants from outside of the United States are eligible to apply for funding.
Yes. Abstract submissions should include a cost-share that is within our target range of minimum 30-50% minimum ,unless you satisfy the regulatory exception (included below for reference). Currently, none of the DRIVe partners under the DRIVe EZ-BAA have been awarded a contract that does not include a cost-share component below range, including all universities and non-profit organizations. Cost-share may be in-kind or cash contributions. It may also come from a third-party investor/sponsor, however, it is up to you to ensure you receive their contribution toward the proposed project. Many organizations offer to cover Overhead or Fringe Benefits. Some also offer pro-bono labor hours or sponsored equipment, materials, or subcontractor costs. A combination of all of the above could be acceptable. It would need to be indicated on a submission what is being cost-shared. To qualify for no cost-share under an EZ-BAA award, a respondent must show that there is "no probability that the respondent will receive present or future benefits from participation as described in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 16.303." Examples of present or future benefits include increased technical know-how, training for employees, acquisition of goods or services, development of a commercially viable product that can be sold in the commercial market, and use of background knowledge in future contracts.
Projects funded under this program have data sharing requirements with the U.S. government consistent with government regulation (FAR 52.227-14 Rights in Data). The program requires that you share all data (including raw data) generated under the project for government use consistent with the regulation.
While you can include links to figures or references, it is not mandated that reviewers view that outside information. At this time, the abstract format does not accept any figures, only text.
The Beyond the Needle program has or is currently supporting nine programs in different stages of development.
