Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS): Impact on Population Health | CDC RFA DP 24 0023

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA DP 24 0023

The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS): Impact on Population Health funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number: CDC RFA DP 24 0023) is a CDC cooperative agreement designed to strengthen and expand the reporting of population health outcomes by supporting BRFSS surveillance activities. BRFSS is a long-standing public health data system that collects information on health-related behaviors, chronic disease risk factors, and other indicators that state and territorial health agencies rely on for planning, evaluation, and decision-making. A central emphasis in this opportunity is improving how well health outcomes are captured and reported, with an explicit focus on advancing health equity by ensuring underrepresented groups are better reflected in surveillance data and the insights derived from it.

The core objective of the program is to monitor health risk behaviors across different administrative levels, which generally means generating usable, comparable data that can inform action at state and potentially sub-state levels depending on the design and analytical approach. In practice, this supports the ability of public health leaders to see where risks and disparities exist, track trends over time, and evaluate whether policies or interventions are making a measurable difference. By centering equity, the opportunity signals that applicants should prioritize approaches that improve the quality, completeness, and usefulness of data for populations that are often missed, undercounted, or not well characterized in standard surveillance outputs.

Methodologically, the opportunity is anchored in the established BRFSS approach: use of a standardized telephone questionnaire administered within the BRFSS surveillance system. Standardization is important here because it allows comparisons across jurisdictions and over time, which is a major reason BRFSS remains a backbone public health surveillance tool in the United States and affiliated jurisdictions. The focus on telephone-based survey administration also implies expectations around operational capacity for survey implementation, such as sampling, calling protocols, interviewer training, quality assurance, and producing reliable estimates that meet BRFSS standards.

Data sharing and access are framed in a public health use context. The opportunity states that data are collected specifically for public health purposes by state health departments, U.S. territories, or freely associated states, and the CDC. This underscores that BRFSS information is not being collected for private or commercial use, but to support governmental public health functions. It also points to an environment where data stewardship, privacy protections, and adherence to CDC and jurisdictional requirements are key, while still enabling the analysis and dissemination needed to inform public health action and accountability.

In terms of funding mechanics and scale, this is a discretionary cooperative agreement under the health activity category (CFDA 93.336) offered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, specifically within NCCDPHP. A cooperative agreement typically means the CDC expects substantial involvement during the project period, such as collaboration on technical standards, performance monitoring, and alignment with national surveillance goals. The stated award ceiling is $600,000, and the opportunity anticipates 57 awards, suggesting broad geographic coverage and participation across many jurisdictions and partners.

Eligibility is described as open and unrestricted in competitive terms, meaning many types of organizations can apply, including state, county, and city governments; special districts; independent school districts; public and private higher education institutions; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status; for-profit organizations (including small businesses); and other entities. Even with broad eligibility, applications must still meet the requirements laid out in the initial review criteria, and the notice cautions that certain factors can render an application non-responsive. Practically, that means applicants should pay close attention to compliance elements such as required components, formatting, responsiveness to program purpose, and any specific submission or capability expectations referenced in the initial review section of the full announcement.

Key dates included in the listing show the opportunity was created on 2024-02-13, with an original closing date of 2024-04-15. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as CDC support for maintaining and strengthening BRFSS-driven surveillance and reporting, with special attention to improving the visibility of health outcomes and risk behaviors among underrepresented groups so that public health policy and programs can be guided by more complete and equitable data.

• The Centers for Disease Control - NCCDPHP in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS): Impact on Population Health" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.336.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-02-13.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-04-15. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $600,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 57 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others, Unrestricted.

Apply for CDC RFA DP 24 0023

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