The Morrison Government is investing $100 million to improve the health of Australians in rural, remote and regional areas through access to innovative clinical trials.
Australians in rural, regional and remote areas face barriers to taking part in clinical trials; including distance, cultural difference, geographical isolation and workforce capacity.
Clinical trials are a significant contributor to advancing new drugs, medical devices and treatments.
Almost a third of Australians live in rural, regional and remote areas, and rural and remote communities have significantly worse health outcomes, and shorter life expectancies.
People in rural, remote and regional areas should not be disadvantaged when it comes to accessing trials, purely because of where they live.
The Rural, Regional and Remote Clinical Trial Enabling Infrastructure Program will seek to remove barriers to participating in clinical trials by:
- Improving facilities, equipment, services and systems in rural, regional and remote Australia.
- Reducing the burden, costs and risks for patients and their families related to clinical trial participation.
- Increasing research capacity.
This contestable program, funded under the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), is all about ensuring patients can access clinical trials where they live.
Grant opportunities for this program are now open.
Eligibility criteria, closing dates and any other relevant information will be published on business.gov.au and GrantConnect.