Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU): Expansion Supplement | CDC RFA TS19 19010301SUPP21

Opportunity Information: Apply for CDC RFA TS19 19010301SUPP21

The Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU): Expansion Supplement is a federal cooperative agreement funding opportunity from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The grant is designed to maintain, strengthen, and expand the national PEHSU network, which serves as a key source of medical information and consultative support on environmental exposures and conditions that can affect health, especially during sensitive periods such as preconception, pregnancy, infancy, childhood, and adolescence. The overall intent is to reinforce PEHSU as a national clinical and public health resource that helps health professionals, communities, and partners understand and respond to environmental health risks impacting children and families.

A major focus of the opportunity is strengthening coordination and collaboration among ATSDR, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the PEHSU National Program Office (NPO). The recipient funded under this supplement is expected to lead and manage the day-to-day operations of the national PEHSU network through the NPO role, and to work closely with each regional PEHSU. In practice, this means supporting consistent network performance, helping regional units share tools and best practices, aligning activities to national priorities, and ensuring the network meets program goals and achieves measurable health outcomes. Because this is a cooperative agreement, the federal agency is not simply issuing funds and stepping back; it signals ongoing involvement and collaboration with the awardee in implementing the program.

The NOFO also requires two specific program components that the recipient must deliver as part of the expanded work. Component 1 centers on building capacity among health professionals and environmental justice or otherwise disadvantaged communities to address childrens environmental health risks associated with COVID-19. This component reflects the idea that the pandemic intersects with environmental health in ways that can worsen inequities, such as differences in housing quality, exposure to indoor air pollutants, community-level pollution burdens, access to health care, and the ability to reduce exposures. The expected direction is workforce and community capacity-building, which typically includes training, technical assistance, and practical guidance that equips clinicians and community partners to recognize, communicate about, and reduce environmental risks affecting children in the context of COVID-19.

Component 2 requires the development of educational materials focused on per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) for health care professionals and students. The purpose is to raise awareness of potential PFAS-related health impacts and to strengthen clinicians ability to provide risk mitigation guidance to patients. In other words, the supplement is pushing the network to translate PFAS science into usable clinical and educational products, so providers can better answer patient questions, interpret exposure concerns, and offer realistic steps to reduce risk when appropriate. The emphasis on both practicing professionals and students suggests an intention to influence current clinical practice while also improving longer-term competency in the health workforce.

Administratively, this opportunity was listed as discretionary funding using a cooperative agreement mechanism, categorized under health, with CFDA number 93.161. It was released June 16, 2021, with an original application deadline of July 30, 2021 (applications due by 11:59 pm ET). The anticipated funding structure included an award ceiling of $3,500,000 and an expectation of a single award, indicating ATSDR intended to fund one lead recipient to operate the NPO and coordinate the national network rather than distributing multiple separate awards for the national office function. Eligibility is described broadly as "Others" with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement, implying that applicants needed to consult the NOFO text for specific organizational eligibility requirements.

Taken together, the PEHSU Expansion Supplement is essentially a national network-strengthening and targeted expansion effort: it supports continued operation and improvement of the PEHSU system, deepens federal partner coordination with ATSDR and EPA, and adds two focused deliverables aimed at urgent and high-priority environmental health topics, namely COVID-19-related pediatric environmental health risks in environmental justice and disadvantaged communities, and PFAS education to improve clinical awareness and patient guidance.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control - ATSDR in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU): Expansion Supplement" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.161.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 16, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 30, 2021 Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 1159 pm ET on the listed application due date.. (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 $3,500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for CDC RFA TS19 19010301SUPP21

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