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The Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx)
The rapid worldwide spread and impact of COVID-19 has created a need for accurate, reliable, and readily accessible testing on a massive scale. To meet this challenge, the RADxSM initiative created programs that will make it possible to rapidly scale up testing across the country and help make tests available to the people who need them most.
RADx Advanced Technology Platforms (RADx-ATP)
Goal:
Increase testing capacity and throughput by identifying existing and late-stage testing platforms for COVID-19 that are advanced enough to achieve rapid scale-up or expanded geographical placement in a short amount of time.
Budget: $230 million
Summary:
Specific projects include scaling up existing technologies that already have or are near U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorization for SARS-CoV-2 detection, establishing or expanding regional testing hubs to validate and perform clinical tests, and accelerating the development and implementation of tests for multiple infectious diseases, including viruses and the immune response, bacteria, and genetics.
RADx Radical (RADx-rad)
Goal:
Support new, nontraditional approaches that address current gaps in COVID-19 testing, as well as applications of existing approaches to make them more usable, accessible, or accurate. These approaches may lead to new ways to identify SARS-CoV-2 as well as potential future viruses.
Budget: $200 million
Summary:
Examples of nontraditional approaches include community wastewater analysis and other surveillance methods; novel analytical platforms, such as next-generation sequencing, coupled with point-of-care, noninvasive sample collection; screening and home-based tests; integrating artificial intelligence (AI) systems with novel biosensing or laboratory diagnostics and digital health technologies to screen, diagnose, and monitor COVID-19 and predict disease severity; and automatic, real-time detection and tracing of SARS-CoV-2 by integrating virus-sensing elements with touchscreen or other digital devices.
RADx Tech
Goal:
Develop, validate, and commercialize point-of-care and home-based tests — and improve clinical laboratory tests — that can directly detect the virus.
Budget: $500 million
Summary:
RADx Tech has expanded the Point of Care Technology Research Network (POCTRN). Scientists and inventors with a rapid testing technology compete in a national “shark tank”–type COVID-19 testing challenge for a share of up to $500 million over all phases of development. The technologies go through a highly competitive, rapid, three-phase selection process to identify the best candidates for at-home or point-of-care tests for COVID-19. Finalists are then matched with technical, business, and manufacturing experts to increase the odds of success.
If certain selected technologies are already relatively far along in development, they can be advanced immediately to the appropriate step in the commercialization process.
RADx Underserved Populations (RADx-UP)
Goal:
Understand why COVID-19 affects some people more severely than others and help people in the communities that are hit hardest.
Budget: $500 million
Summary:
NIH is developing community-engaged projects across the United States to assess and expand COVID-19 testing for these underserved and/or vulnerable populations, which include African Americans and American Indians/Alaska Natives; people in nursing homes, jails, rural areas, or underserved urban areas; pregnant women; and the homeless. Activities include establishing multiple clinical research sites across the country and encouraging collaboration between the program sites and the community — tribal health centers, houses of worship, homeless shelters, and prison systems — to identify and address their unique needs.
RADx Governance
Diana Bianchi, M.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Patti Brennan, Ph.D.
National Library of Medicine
Noni Byrnes, Ph.D.
Center for Scientific Review
Richard Hodes, M.D.
National Institute on Aging
Helene Langevin, M.D.
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
Eliseo Pérez-Stable, M.D.
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Tara Schwetz, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
NIH Office of the Director
Bruce Tromberg, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Rick Woychik, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
David George, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Jill Heemskerk, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Tiffani Bailey Lash, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Todd Merchak
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Bruce Tromberg, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Charles Anamelechi
Center for Information Technology
James Anderson, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Maureen Beanan, Ph.D.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Gene Civillico, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Christine Cooper
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Kate Egan
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Robert Eisinger, Ph.D.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Rachael Fleurence, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
David George, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Taylor Gilliland, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Jill Heemskerk, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
William Heetderks, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Tiffani Bailey Lash, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Ray MacDougall
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Jacqueline Martinez
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Matthew McMahon, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Todd Merchak
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Doug Sheeley, Sc.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Ashley Storm
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Holly Taylor
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Bruce Tromberg, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Andrew Weitz, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Michael Wolfson, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Diana Bianchi, M.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Patti Brennan, Ph.D.
National Library of Medicine
Gary Gibbons, M.D.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Joshua Gordon, M.D., Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health
Richard Hodes, M.D. (Co-Chair)
National Institute on Aging
Jon Lorsch, Ph.D.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Eliseo Pérez-Stable, M.D. (Co-Chair)
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
William Riley, Ph.D.
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, NIH Office of the Director
Tara Schwetz, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
NIH Office of the Director
Nora Volkow, M.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Judith Arroyo, Ph.D.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Crystal Barksdale, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health
Partha Bhattacharyya, Ph.D.
National Institute on Aging
Dorothy Castille, Ph.D.
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Alison Cernich, Ph.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Janine Clayton, M.D.
Office of Research on Women’s Health, NIH Office of the Director
Gwen Collman, Ph.D.
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Wilson Compton, M.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Josh Denny, M.D.
All of Us Research Program, NIH Office of the Director
Qi Duan, Ph.D.
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
Valerie Florance, Ph.D.
National Library of Medicine
Jessica Gill, Ph.D.
National Institute of Nursing Research
Gregory Greenwood, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health
Monica Hooper, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Richard Jenkins, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Dave Kaufman, Ph.D.
National Human Genome Research Institute
Jonathan King, Ph.D.
National Institute on Aging
Dmitriy Krepkiy, Ph.D.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Ming Lei, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Charlene Le Fauve, Ph.D.
Scientific Workforce Diversity Office, NIH Office of the Director
Anna Mazzucco, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
David Murray, Ph.D.
Office of Disease Prevention, NIH Office of the Director
Anne Pariser, M.D.
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
Kamilah Rashid, Pharm.D.
NIH Office of the Director
Paul Sammak, Ph.D.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Nadra Tyus, Dr.P.H.
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Elizabeth Walsh, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director
David Wilson, Ph.D.
Tribal Health Research Office, NIH Office of the Director
Deborah Young-Hyman, Ph.D.
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, NIH Office of the Director
Leonardo Angelone, Ph.D.
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Douglas Bell, Ph.D.
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Judith Cooper, Ph.D. (Co-chair)
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Changhai Cui, Ph.D.
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Valerie Florance, Ph.D.
National Library of Medicine
Joel Islam, Ph.D.
NIH Office of the Director and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
Bill Kapogiannis, M.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Elena Koustova, Ph.D., M.B.A.
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Orlando Lopez, Ph.D.
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
Sai Majji, Ph.D.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Amanda Melillo, Ph.D.
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
Patricia Powell, Ph.D. (Co-chair)
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Susan Sullivan, Ph.D.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Danilo Tagle, Ph.D., M.S.
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
Rick Woychik, Ph.D.
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
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