Federal research agency
Appears in 4 stories · Last updated Oct 22, 2026
Administering SPECTRA; TA4 closed to new submissions on October 21, with three technical areas still to come
The first SPECTRA deadline has passed. Solution summaries for Technical Area 4, the enabling-technologies track, closed October 21 at 3 p.m. ET, three days later than the original October 18 date, and ARPA-H's program page now lists the track as closed to new submissions.
Updated Oct 22
Program sponsor
A single dose of a cell therapy can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a delayed shipment or a failed freezer can destroy it. The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), the U.S. agency that funds high-risk medical research, is spending up to $87 million to remove that fragility.
Updated Oct 13
As of May 2026: Designated to administer $50 million in psychedelic research funding, matched by state investments
For 55 years, the federal government classified psilocybin, MDMA, LSD, and ibogaine as Schedule I substances. On April 18, 2026, President Trump signed an executive order 'Accelerating Medical Treatments for Serious Mental Illness' directing the FDA to expedite clinical trials of those substances for PTSD in veterans.
Updated May 31
As of May 2026: Investing over $500 million in cancer-related projects
Cancer death rates in the United States peaked in 1991 at 215 deaths per 100,000 people and have since fallen 34%, averting an estimated 4.5 million deaths. The decline accelerated from about 1% annually in the 1990s to 2% annually by 2015-2020, driven by plummeting smoking rates, earlier detection through screening, and advances in targeted therapies and immunotherapy.
Updated May 22
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