The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), Division of Research, Innovation and Ventures (DRIVe) is releasing this ÂœDRIVe Accelerator Network Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to solicit applicants interested in working with BARDA DRIVe to stimulate the public

credit: Active Rain

good by creating or leveraging a network of accelerators across America to promote national health security innovation.

In order to address the serious 21st century health threats facing our nation, BARDA DRIVe invests in innovative products (therapies, vaccines, diagnostics, and devices), technologies and tools in order to increase our capability and capacity to respond.

Collectively, these will be referred to as health security products and technologies.

Applicants who enter agreements with BARDA will become members of the Accelerator Network to:
Support BARDA DRIVe health security products and technologies as they navigate research, development, and regulatory pathways; Provide wrap-around services to assist the R&D efforts (such as technical and business advice, access to facilities and incubator spaces, integration services); Identify and foster innovations in early health security product and technology development; and Cultivate the community of those making a difference in health security products, technologies and innovations The DRIVe Accelerator Network will leverage key regional hubs across the US where health security products and technologies in biotechnology, life science research, and medical innovations are most heavily occurring, and will increase the growth potential in other regions across the US.

In this way, accelerators distributed around the country will be physically networked among, and can make connections between, BARDA DRIVe product and technology developers/innovators and the community of experts who can provide support to them.

This FOA describes the DRIVe desired approach to create an accelerator network to support the DRIVe R&D portfolio for rapidly advancing new and innovative medical technologies, products, and approaches from proof-of-concept discovery to mature clinical candidates.

The goal will be to populate the R&D pipeline with candidate health security products and technologies that are ready to advance to later-stage funding outside of the accelerator network for clinical development and commercialization, to revolutionize our capability and capacity for national health security preparedness and response.