Opportunity Information: Apply for NAP AX 17 004
This funding opportunity, titled "Closing the Gap between Standards Development and Implementation: Maturing the Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture (C-CDA) and Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) Standard," focuses on a practical problem in health information exchange: even when electronic health information is transmitted successfully, the receiving system often cannot reliably process it without manual cleanup or interpretation. The core idea is that computers can only automate the intake and use of clinical data when the information arrives in consistent, predictable formats that both the sending and receiving systems understand the same way. In a healthcare environment with countless electronic health record systems, apps, and data exchange networks, it is not realistic for every organization to negotiate custom data formats with every other organization it needs to connect with. The opportunity is designed to strengthen the bridge between how interoperability standards are written and how they actually get implemented in real-world software, especially for widely used standards like C-CDA and FHIR.
The description highlights the role of standards development organizations (SDOs) as the groups that coordinate stakeholders across the health IT ecosystem to create shared technical standards for specific exchange purposes. It explicitly references Health Level 7 International (HL7), which stewards both C-CDA and FHIR, along with other SDOs such as the National Council for Prescription Drug Plans (NCPDP) and Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE). Beyond publishing the base technical standards, these organizations also maintain related implementation specifications, profiles, and guidance that tell developers how to apply the standards for particular use cases. The grant’s emphasis on "closing the gap" reflects a familiar challenge: a standard can look solid on paper yet still lead to inconsistent implementations if key constraints, examples, testing approaches, and clarifications are missing, ambiguous, or not aligned with real deployment realities.
Administratively, this is a discretionary funding opportunity from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), specifically the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), under CFDA 93.826. The funding instruments include a cooperative agreement and a grant, indicating ONC expected to be meaningfully involved in the project’s direction and outcomes rather than acting only as a passive funder. The opportunity number is NAP AX 17 004. It was created on August 1, 2017, and originally closed on August 31, 2017, with no extension noted. The program anticipated a single award, with an award ceiling of $750,000, implying a targeted project with a defined scope intended to produce concrete outputs rather than a broad multi-site research program.
In practical terms, the opportunity is aimed at advancing the maturity and implementability of C-CDA and FHIR by improving the supporting ecosystem that makes standards usable in production: clearer implementation instructions, tighter conformance expectations, and artifacts that reduce variability across vendors and implementers. The underlying policy and technical goal is improved interoperability where systems can exchange structured clinical information and have it be reliably parsed, understood, and used by the receiving system with minimal human effort. By investing in the "last mile" between standards development and implementation, ONC’s intent is to make standardized exchange more consistent, scalable, and trustworthy across the healthcare system, ultimately reducing friction in data sharing and helping health IT deliver on automation, quality, and efficiency.Apply for NAP AX 17 004
- The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the National Coordinator in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Closing the Gap between Standards Development and Implementation-Maturing the Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture (C-CDA) and Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) Standard" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.826.
- This funding opportunity was created on Aug 01, 2017.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 31, 2017 No Explanation. (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 $750,000.00 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).
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is the title of this funding opportunity?
The funding opportunity is titled "Closing the Gap between Standards Development and Implementation: Maturing the Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture (C-CDA) and Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) Standard."
What problem is this opportunity trying to solve?
It targets a common real-world interoperability problem: even when electronic health information is transmitted successfully, the receiving system often cannot reliably process it without manual cleanup or interpretation. The goal is to make exchanged clinical data arrive in consistent, predictable formats so computers can automatically intake and use it the same way across systems.
Why is there a "gap" between standards development and implementation?
A standard can appear complete on paper but still produce inconsistent results in real software if key constraints, examples, clarifications, or testing approaches are missing or ambiguous. When implementations vary, receiving systems may not parse or interpret exchanged information consistently, which creates downstream manual work and reduces trust in automated exchange.
What standards are the focus of the project?
The opportunity focuses on maturing two widely used interoperability standards: C-CDA (Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture) and FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources).
What does "maturing" C-CDA and FHIR mean in this context?
In this opportunity, "maturing" refers to strengthening the practical implementability of the standards by improving the supporting ecosystem that makes them work in production. This includes clearer implementation instructions, tighter conformance expectations, and other artifacts that reduce variability across vendors and implementers.
What kinds of outputs or artifacts does ONC want to support?
The description emphasizes practical deliverables that make standards more usable in real-world software, such as improved implementation guidance, clearer constraints and expectations, and related materials that help implementers apply C-CDA and FHIR more consistently across different health IT products and networks.
Why is it unrealistic for organizations to negotiate custom formats with each trading partner?
Healthcare has countless EHR systems, apps, and exchange networks. If every organization had to negotiate custom formats with every other organization, exchange would not scale. Shared standards are meant to avoid one-off agreements by giving everyone a common, predictable way to represent and exchange data.
How do standards development organizations (SDOs) fit into this opportunity?
SDOs coordinate stakeholders across the health IT ecosystem to create shared technical standards for specific exchange purposes. The opportunity highlights that SDOs also maintain implementation specifications, profiles, and guidance that explain how to apply the base standards for particular use cases.
Which standards development organizations are referenced?
The description explicitly references Health Level 7 International (HL7), which stewards both C-CDA and FHIR. It also references other SDOs, including the National Council for Prescription Drug Plans (NCPDP) and Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE).
Which federal agency is offering this funding opportunity?
This is a discretionary funding opportunity from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), specifically the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).
What is the CFDA number for this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed is 93.826.
What are the funding instruments for this opportunity?
The funding instruments include a cooperative agreement and a grant. The presence of a cooperative agreement indicates ONC expected to be meaningfully involved in the project direction and outcomes, rather than acting only as a passive funder.
What is the opportunity number?
The opportunity number is NAP AX 17 004.
When was this opportunity created and when did it close?
It was created on August 1, 2017, and originally closed on August 31, 2017. No extension is noted in the information provided.
How many awards were anticipated?
The program anticipated a single award, suggesting a focused effort intended to produce concrete outputs.
What is the maximum funding amount (award ceiling)?
The award ceiling is $750,000.
What is the intended impact on health information exchange?
The intended impact is improved interoperability where systems can exchange structured clinical information and have it be reliably parsed, understood, and used by the receiving system with minimal human effort. By strengthening the "last mile" between standards development and implementation, the effort aims to make exchange more consistent, scalable, and trustworthy.
How does this opportunity relate to automation in health IT?
The opportunity is grounded in the idea that computers can only automate intake and use of clinical data when information arrives in consistent, predictable formats that both sending and receiving systems interpret the same way. Better implementation guidance and conformance expectations can reduce manual intervention and enable more reliable automation.
Is this opportunity more like research funding or implementation-focused funding?
Based on the description, it is oriented toward practical implementation support and real-world usability rather than a broad multi-site research program. The single award and defined ceiling imply a targeted project designed to produce concrete standard-related outputs.
What does "closing the gap" mean in practical terms?
It means improving the bridge between how standards are written and how they are implemented by developers. The focus is on reducing inconsistencies by clarifying ambiguous areas, providing better guidance, strengthening conformance expectations, and producing supporting artifacts that make implementations more uniform across vendors.
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