National Institute on Drug Abuse

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a sub-agency of the Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health, funds and procures research and operational support for drug abuse science, addiction neurobiology, and treatment advancement through both federal contracts and grants awarded since the mid-1990s.

NIDA executes a substantial federal contract portfolio spanning 15,825 awards since 1994, with a combined potential value of $12.17 billion and $8.32 billion in obligated dollars. Contract activity has declined sharply in recent years: 708 awards in 2022, 404 in 2023, 322 in 2024, 224 in 2025, and 158 year-to-date in 2026. The most recent recorded award date is October 20, 2026. Contract competition is moderately concentrated among top primes by award count, where Kelly Services, Inc. leads with 206 awards and $233.8 million combined potential value, followed by Axle Informatics, LLC (117 awards, $94.8 million) and Gap Solutions, Inc. (104 awards, $22.3 million). By combined potential value, concentration drops significantly: Kelly Services and Axle Informatics remain top two, but The Emmes Company, LLC ranks third with $89.7 million across 41 awards, indicating that award volume does not correspond tightly to dollar value. The portfolio includes 2,908 distinct prime contractors. Ninety-three percent of awards carry no set-aside designation; small business awards account for 6 percent, with 8(a) sole-source, woman-owned small business, and other socioeconomic set-asides each under 1 percent.

NIDA simultaneously administers a substantial federal grant program with 7,328 total awards since 1975 and $23.48 billion in federal dollars obligated. Grant activity has remained relatively stable: 612 awards in 2023, 623 in 2024, 460 in 2025, 461 in 2026, and 24 recorded for 2027 (the latest recorded award date is February 9, 2027, falling three months ahead of today). Grant recipients are highly fragmented, with the top five institutions holding only 13 percent of recent awards by count and 4 percent of federal dollars. Yale University, The Johns Hopkins University, University of Washington, University of California San Diego, and Regents of the University of Michigan dominate by award count; Johns Hopkins, UC San Diego, Yale, New York University, and University of Washington lead by federal dollars obligated. The 843 distinct grant recipients span academic research institutions and supporting organizations. Grants are predominantly structured as Project Grants (92 percent of awards) with a smaller share of Cooperative Agreements (8 percent).

Recent contract opportunities emphasize research infrastructure, biorepository services, and specialized equipment. Solicitation 75N98026R00175 (Biobanking, Laboratory Analytics, and Associated Informatics Services for NIH Biorepositories, sources sought posted September 28, 2026, due October 20, 2026) seeks to consolidate or recompete NIH-funded biorepositories including the NIDA Center for Genetic Studies and NIH Brain Development Cohorts Biobank. Solicitation 75N98026Q01128 (Account Management, Planning, and Maintenance for Online Crowd-Sourced Surveys and Cognitive Tasks for Individuals, posted September 1, 2026, closed September 23, 2026, was a full and open RFQ for survey platform services). A small-business sources-sought notice for Medicinal Chemistry Support Program for Therapeutic Development (MCSP) posted August 12, 2026, with response due September 14, 2026, signals preparation for therapeutic development contracts. Multiple pre-solicitation notices for MRI maintenance services, analytical equipment, and reagent supply contracts remain in market-research phase as of late August through October 2026.