Who funds disability research?

We count 283 funded disability projects, active between 2021 and 2035, from 7 funders. The most came from EU · MSCA (53 projects), Wellcome (45 projects) and EU · ERC (44 projects). The median award is $2.6M, across the 266 of 283 projects that list an amount.

Funded projects

283

Funders

7

Median award

$2.6M

Open calls now

8

Top funders of disability research

Projects whose title or summary mentions disability. Median award: of the projects that list an amount, in US dollars; “—” when fewer than 3 do.

Open disability funding calls

8 open calls mention disability today.

• Improved quality of life of persons with disabilities in provinces heavily sprayed with agent orange in Ca Mau and Quang Ngai
  U.S. Mission to VietnamUp to $28,500,000Deadline: November 19, 2026 ·
• Addressing disabilities through the life course to support independent living and inclusion
  European Commission · Horizon Europe€6,000,000 – €8,000,000Deadline: February 17, 2027 ·
• Persons with disabilities: opportunities for labour inclusion and social protection through the life course
  European Commission · Horizon Europe€3,000,000 – €4,000,000Deadline: September 23, 2027 ·
• Leveraging Network Infrastructure to Conduct Innovative Research for Women, Children, Pregnant and Lactating Women, and Persons with Disabilities (UG3/UH3 - Clinical Trial Optional)
  National Institutes of HealthUp to $6,250,000Deadline: November 15, 2027 ·
• Innovative Screening Approaches and Therapies for Screenable Disorders in Newborns (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional)
  National Institutes of HealthNot specifiedDeadline: November 16, 2027 ·
  Real odds: About 1 in 8 funded (13% · NIH R01-equivalent grants, all NIH institutes, FY2025)
• Innovative Screening Approaches and Therapies for Screenable Disorders in Newborns (R21 - Clinical Trial Optional)
  National Institutes of HealthUp to $200,000Deadline: November 16, 2027 ·
  Real odds: About 1 in 9 funded (11% · NIH R21 (exploratory/developmental), all NIH institutes, FY2025)
• Screening and Functional Validation of Genomic Variants Associated with Human Congenital Anomalies (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  National Institutes of HealthNot specifiedDeadline: January 7, 2028 ·
  Real odds: About 1 in 8 funded (13% · NIH R01-equivalent grants, all NIH institutes, FY2025)
• Causal Hypotheses on the Oral-Systemic Health Impacts of Human Behaviors among People with Chronic Conditions (U01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  National Institutes of HealthUp to $500,000Deadline: July 5, 2029 ·

Real odds

• About 1 in 8 funded · 13% · NIH R01-equivalent grants, all NIH institutes, FY2025 · NIH Data Book, report 29
• About 1 in 9 funded · 11% · NIH R21 (exploratory/developmental), all NIH institutes, FY2025 · NIH Data Book, report 202

Published success rates for the programs behind the open calls above: the share of applications the funder funded, program-wide, not for this topic.

Forecast: announced, not open yet

8 forecast calls on disability. Funders publish forecasts before a call opens; you can't apply to these yet, and dates can change.

• ForecastUniversity Centers for Developmental Disabilities in Educaction, Research, and Service
  Administration for Community Living$619,042 – $629,042Expected to open December 1, 2026
• ForecastCenter on Knowledge Translation for Disability and Rehabilitation Research
  Administration for Community Living$795,000 – $800,000Expected to open January 13, 2027
• ForecastRehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC): National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities
  Administration for Community Living$920,000 – $925,000Expected to open January 26, 2027
• ForecastRehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Recreational, Sport, and Exercise Technologies for People with Disabilities
  Administration for Community Living$970,000 – $975,000Expected to open February 15, 2027
• ForecastLearning Disabilities Research Centers
  National Institutes of HealthNot specifiedExpected to open July 24, 2027
• ForecastAdvanced Rehabilitation Research Training (ARRT) Program - Community Living and Participation
  Administration for Community Living$245,000 – $250,000Expected to open October 5, 2026
• ForecastAdvanced Rehabilitation Research Training (ARRT) Program - Employment
  Administration for Community Living$245,000 – $250,000Expected to open October 5, 2026
• ForecastAdvanced Rehabilitation Research Training (ARRT) Program - Health and Function
  Administration for Community Living$245,000 – $250,000Expected to open October 5, 2026

Funded disability projects

A sample, latest start first, at most three per program.

• Epistemic Exclusion and Patient Safety Participation Evaluation (EPSPE): conceptualising a knowledge framework for involvement, learning and change with harmed patients and families from diverse backgrounds.
  Wellcome · £2,627,352 · ends 2032
• Novel Methods of Investigating Disease Mechanisms and Treatment in Children with Tuberculous Meningitis
  Wellcome · £4,439,041 · ends 2032
• Instrumentalised Disability: Gendered Pathways to Health Injustice in China's one-child generation
  Wellcome · £379,729 · ends 2031
• Clinical validation of plasma MTBR-tau243 in AD diagnostics and prognostics
  NIH · NIA · $3,901,605 · ends 2031
• Cognitive Neurocomputational Task Reliability and Clinical Applications Consortium
  NIH · NIMH · $3,252,372 · ends 2031
• Elucidating the contributions of genetic variation to congenital heart disease causality and outcomes
  NIH · NHLBI · $3,095,910 · ends 2031
• Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Prospective Community Study
  NIH · NIA · $3,831,172 · ends 2031
• Angiotensin II type 1 receptor blockade as a novel mechanism of antidepressant action - a proof-of-mechanism study
  UKRI · MRC · £1,235,904 · ends 2030
• Mechanisms for population strategies to prevent diet- and activity-related chronic disease
  UKRI · MRC · £2,407,243 · ends 2030
• Consortium for Researching Inclusive Cultures in the Arts (CRICA), Doctoral Focal Awards in the Arts and Humanities
  UKRI · AHRC · £1,687,005 · ends 2030

How we count

Funded projects come from public award records (NIH RePORTER, NSF, EU CORDIS, UKRI Gateway to Research, Wellcome, the Gates Foundation, DOE, NASA and USDA NIFA) whose title or summary matches “disability or disabilities”. NIH lists each budget year separately; one project counts once. Amounts are as the funder lists them; medians use only projects that list one, in US dollars. Open calls and forecasts are from our listings of October 28, 2026. A project can mention a topic without being mainly about it, so treat the counts as a guide to who funds the area.