Funding RadarHealth Grants Intelligence

Our Methodology

1. Official Data Sources

All opportunity data originates from official federal government sources. We do not scrape third-party grant databases, commercial aggregators, or unofficial sources. Our primary data feeds are:

  • Grants.gov — The central federal grants clearinghouse operated by HHS. We query the Grants.gov API for all health-related funding opportunity announcements (FOAs/NOFOs).
  • Simpler.Grants.gov — The modernized search interface for federal grants, also maintained by HHS. Provides enhanced metadata and structured search capabilities.
  • HRSA (Health Resources and Services Administration) — Direct program and award data for health center funding, rural health programs, maternal/child health, and workforce development.
  • SAM.gov Assistance Listings — Federal program-level metadata (formerly CFDA) that provides context about ongoing assistance programs beyond individual open notices.

2. Data Synchronization

Our automated ingestion pipeline runs daily. Each sync job fetches new and updated records from source APIs, normalizes fields into a canonical schema, deduplicates across sources, and stores both the raw source payload and our normalized version. We track:

  • Source system name and record ID for every opportunity
  • Official URL linking directly to the federal notice
  • Timestamp of when data was last fetched
  • Whether the record has been reviewed by our editorial team
  • Change history — if a deadline, amount, or status changes between syncs, we detect and flag it

Despite daily syncs, there may be a delay of up to 24 hours between when a notice is posted on Grants.gov and when it appears on our platform. Always verify deadlines and details on the official source.

3. Topic Taxonomy

Every opportunity is tagged with one or more health topics from our taxonomy. This taxonomy was built specifically for health organizations and covers areas including behavioral health, substance use, workforce development, telehealth, maternal and child health, oral health, tribal health, primary care, care coordination, and more.

Tagging is performed using a rules-based engine that analyzes the opportunity title, summary, agency, program name, and CFDA/Assistance Listing number. The engine uses keyword matching, synonym expansion (e.g., "opioid response" maps to "substance use"), and agency-program associations.

Tags carry a confidence indicator and are subject to human review. We clearly distinguish between rules-based tags, AI-suggested tags, and manually verified tags.

4. Fit Assessment

Our fit assessment uses transparent, rules-based logic — not opaque AI scoring. Each assessment considers:

  • Eligible applicant types — Whether the opportunity specifies FQHCs, hospitals, nonprofits, tribal organizations, state agencies, or other entity types
  • Geographic restrictions — Whether the opportunity is limited to specific states, rural areas, or underserved communities
  • Program alignment — Whether the opportunity topic matches the user's stated interests
  • Cost share requirements — Whether matching funds are required and at what percentage
  • HPSA score relevance — Whether Health Professional Shortage Area scores factor into eligibility or priority

Fit labels (Likely Fit, Possible Fit, Unlikely Fit, Manual Review) are advisory. Every fit assessment includes a rationale explaining why the label was assigned and what the user should independently verify in the official notice. Fit assessments are not guarantees of eligibility.

5. Editorial Content

Plain-English summaries, "who should look" guidance, and "who can skip" notes are written by our team. This editorial content is always visually separated from official source data on every opportunity page. Editorial content is labeled as such and should be treated as interpretation, not official guidance.

Our editorial team includes professionals with direct experience in rural and community health settings. However, editorial content does not constitute legal, financial, or professional grant-writing advice.

6. What We Do Not Do

  • We do not issue, award, or administer grants
  • We do not submit applications on behalf of users
  • We do not guarantee eligibility or funding outcomes
  • We do not provide legal or financial advice
  • We do not replace the official federal notice — every listing includes a direct link to the source

7. Verification Responsibility

Users should always verify opportunity details, deadlines, eligibility requirements, and application instructions directly on the official federal source (Grants.gov, HRSA.gov, SAM.gov, etc.) before taking action. Our platform is a discovery and organization tool — the official notice is the authoritative source of truth.