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Funding callPublic health and epidemiology · Australia

MRFF 2026 Improving the Health of People with Disability (GO8647)

The MRFF 2026 Improving the Health of People with Disability grant opportunity (GO8647) offers up to $30 million for research that improves health outcomes and access to care for people with disability. This guide covers suitable research areas, eligibility and readiness checks, what assessment panels typically value and how to plan a competitive application.

Pubrica InsightsEditorial team, reviewed by a subject specialist
Next deadline
3 March 2027
Last checked
10 November 2026
Funder
Medical Research Future Fund (administered by NHMRC)
Sources
1
Apply through the official call

Key dates

Application deadline
3 March 2027
Details last checked
10 November 2026
Apply through the official call

About the call

Funder
Medical Research Future Fund (administered by NHMRC)
Country
Australia
Scheme type
Project grant
Funding
Up to $30 million
Eligibility
Approved MRFF Eligible Organisations may apply for research that improves health outcomes and access to care for people with disability.
Scope
Public health and epidemiology

Topics consistent with the call

  • Studies improving access to primary and preventive care for people with disability
  • Co-designed interventions addressing health inequities experienced by people with disability
  • Research on accessible health services, communication and information
  • Management of chronic conditions among people with intellectual or physical disability
  • Mental health and wellbeing interventions tailored to people with disability
  • Workforce training to improve health care delivered to people with disability

Based on the published scope; the official page sets out the full themes and requirements.

Is your work a fit? Check before you apply

  1. Confirm that your administering institution is an approved MRFF Eligible Organisation.
  2. Check that the research aims to improve health outcomes or access to care for people with disability.
  3. Involve people with lived experience of disability in design, governance and delivery.
  4. Ensure methods, outcome measures and recruitment are accessible and inclusive.
  5. Prepare a complete, institutionally approved application before the 3 March 2027 deadline.

Why This Funding Call Matters

People with disability frequently face barriers to health care, including inaccessible services, communication difficulties and fragmented support, which contribute to poorer health outcomes. Research focused specifically on these barriers can identify practical changes that services and policymakers can adopt. This dedicated opportunity supports projects that place people with disability at the centre of research, encouraging co-design and inclusive methods that make findings more relevant and more likely to improve care.

Who Should Apply

Academic backgrounds

  • Disability and health research
  • Public health
  • Rehabilitation and allied health
  • Health services research
  • Developmental and intellectual disability medicine

Institutions and sectors

  • Universities and medical research institutes
  • Health services and primary care organisations
  • Disability service providers and advocacy organisations

What Reviewers Typically Value

  1. Meaningful partnership with people with disability throughout the research.
  2. A clear focus on measurable improvements in health outcomes or access to care.
  3. Inclusive and accessible methods suited to diverse disability populations.
  4. A realistic pathway for findings to inform services, workforce practice or policy.

Ideas You Could Develop

Annual health checks for adults with intellectual disabilityA study evaluating how a structured health check programme in general practice affects detection and management of chronic conditions.
Accessible hospital communicationA co-designed intervention improving communication and reasonable adjustments for patients with disability during hospital admission.
Preventive care accessA mixed-methods project identifying and addressing barriers to cancer screening for women with physical disability.

Your Plan to the Deadline

A suggested schedule working back from 3 March 2027. Adjust it to the stage your work has reached.

  1. By 6 Jan 2027

    Read the call documents; confirm eligibility, budget limits, assessment criteria and institutional requirements.

  2. By 20 Jan 2027

    Agree the research question, aims, team and partners; contact your research office.

  3. By 3 Feb 2027

    Draft the case for support, methods, impact and budget.

  4. By 17 Feb 2027

    Obtain internal review, letters of support and institutional sign-off.

  5. By 26 Feb 2027

    Final checks against the funder’s guidance and formatting rules.

  6. By 3 Mar 2027

    Submit through the funder’s system before the deadline.

What you gain

  • Funding for the research, team and resources it needs.
  • Recognition from a competitive, peer-reviewed process.
  • Reviewer feedback that strengthens future applications.
  • A track record for larger grants and fellowships.

What happens after you apply

  1. Eligibility check: the funder confirms the application meets the call rules.
  2. Peer review: external reviewers assess the proposal against the published criteria.
  3. Panel: a committee ranks proposals; some schemes include an interview.
  4. Decision: outcomes are released on the funder’s timetable.
  5. Award: successful applicants agree terms and reporting requirements before starting.

What the Funder Are Looking For

The opportunity seeks research that improves health outcomes and access to care for people with disability. Strong applications typically involve people with lived experience as partners, address a well-defined health or access problem, use inclusive methods and show how findings will be used by services or policymakers. Applicants should confirm detailed priorities, funding per grant and assessment criteria in the grant opportunity guidelines on GrantConnect.

Read the official pageThis guide summarises the opportunity. Confirm deadlines, eligibility and requirements on the official page before you plan your work, and record the date you checked it.Open the official page

Expert help

How Pubrica Can Help

Pubrica’s subject specialists can help you prepare a competitive proposal, planned back from the deadline. You remain the author of your work.

Grant writingProposal writing structured to the funder’s guidance and assessment criteria. Literature review and gap analysisThe evidence base and the gap your proposal addresses. Study designStudy design and methods that reviewers can assess. Statistical analysis planSample size and analysis plans for the proposal. Data management planData management and sharing plans to funder requirements. Proposal editingEditing of the full proposal for clarity and consistency.
Go to the official page

FAQs

Questions Researchers Ask

The next published deadline is 3 March 2027. Dates can change, so confirm them on the official page before you plan your work.

Qualitative research may be relevant, particularly when it informs interventions that improve access or outcomes, but the guidelines may favour projects with a clear path to impact. Review the priorities in the grant opportunity guidelines on GrantConnect before deciding on your design.

Approved MRFF Eligible Organisations may apply for research that improves health outcomes and access to care for people with disability. Confirm the full eligibility rules in the call documents.

Yes. Pubrica’s specialists can review, write, edit and format your proposal. You remain the author and the person responsible for the submission.

Sources

  1. Medical Research Future Fund (administered by NHMRC). (2026). MRFF 2026 Improving the Health of People with Disability (GO8647). Retrieved 10 November 2026, from https://www.grants.gov.au/Go/Show?GoUuid=bbe71953-1721-48e4-96c5-44c310a12d73

How to cite this page

Pubrica Insights. (2026). MRFF 2026 Improving the Health of People with Disability (GO8647). Pubrica. https://pubrica.com/insights/calls-and-conferences/mrff-2026-improving-the-health-of-people-with-disability-go8647/

  • MRFF
  • Disability
  • Health equity
  • Access to care
  • Australia

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MRFF 2026 Improving the Health of People with Disability (GO8647)Next deadline 3 March 2027

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