Frequently asked questions

Is an individual, team, or entity eligible to submit more than one entry?

An individual, team, or entity may submit more than one submission as long as the submissions are distinct.

 

Can federal employees participate in the challenge?

Federal entities and federal employees acting within the scope of their employment are not eligible to win a prize in the challenge. For more information regarding challenge eligibility, please visit the challenge rules here. 

 

Are federal contractors allowed to use federal contract funds to develop their submissions?

Federal contractors may not use federal funds from a contract to develop challenge submissions or to fund efforts in support of challenge submissions. Costs associated with such activities are unallowable and are not allocable to government contracts.

 

Can participants use federal grant funds or cooperative agreement funds to develop their submission?

Participants (whether individuals, teams, or entities) may not use federal funds from a grant award or cooperative agreement to develop their challenge submissions or to fund efforts in support of their challenge submissions. 

 

Can individuals who are not United States citizens or permanent residents participate in the challenge?

Non-U.S. citizens and non-permanent residents are not eligible to win a prize (in whole or in part), as individuals in the challenge. However, non-U.S. citizens and non-permanent residents can participate in the challenge as a member of a team if the Team Leader is a citizen or permanent resident of the United States and the team otherwise satisfies the Eligibility Rules. Their participation as a member of a winning team, if applicable, may be recognized when the KidneyX Sustainability Prize results are announced.

For more information, please visit the eligibility rules here.

 

Can teams be composed of individuals from more than one entity?

If participants register as a team, they are participating on behalf of a group of individuals competing together, but they are not participating on behalf of an entity (i.e., on behalf of a legally established organization, institution, or corporation). Teams may include individuals from more than one entity. 

 

Are participants required to have prior experience with kidney disease?

This challenge invites submissions from a diverse community of innovators — including patients, healthcare providers, engineers, and entrepreneurs. Solutions may involve technological or process approaches and all disciplines and sectors are encouraged to develop KidneyX solutions that reduce water or power usage during dialysis and promote equitable access to care.  For more information, please visit the judging criteria here.

Are there any reporting requirements or restrictions on how the prize money can be used?

Under this challenge, HHS is seeking to award prizes, not grants. The purpose of this challenge is to reward innovation, not provide financial assistance, and HHS does not limit how winners may use prize funds awarded to them from this challenge. Therefore, winners may use prize funds from this challenge to further advance their solutions, but they are not required to do so.  Winners are also not required to report on their use of prize funds.

 

How will the prize money be distributed, and is it taxable?

HHS will use your registration as an individual, team, or entity on the “HHS Challenge Participant Registration Form” to determine who will be paid any winning prize money from this challenge. For more information, please visit the prize payment rules here. 

Before registering, you may wish to consider any potential tax consequences of registering as an individual, team, or entity.

What types of solutions is the KidneyX Sustainability Prize seeking?

The KidneyX Sustainability Prize seeks innovations to reduce water or power usage during dialysis care. This challenge aims to seize opportunities for sustainability by identifying and supporting solutions to reduce the resource demands of maintenance dialysis. The KidneyX Sustainability Prize anticipates that those solutions will help drive meaningful change in the sustainability of kidney care. 

Participants should address all the requirements noted in the announcement and submission form. Participants should also demonstrate how their submission meets the judging criteria. Out of fairness to all potential participants, we are not able to address inquiries about specific solutions.

 

How developed does the solution described in a submission need to be for a participant to be eligible for the KidneyX Sustainability Prize?

Please see the judging criteria and the submission requirements. 

What are the formatting requirements for the submission?

The formatting requirements are described in the submission requirements here.

 

When are submissions due?

For the submission deadline, please see the challenge announcement here. 

 

Can I review my submission after I submit it?

After you submit your submission, you cannot change it; however, you can view it. 

 

Where should I submit my solution?

All submissions must be completed and submitted through the challenge submission site, which is accessible through the following link: https://www.luminarylightbox.com/kidneyx-sustainability-prize. 

How will submissions be evaluated and are some aspects of the evaluation criteria more important than others?

A multidisciplinary group of KidneyX Sustainability Prize judges will review eligible submissions and recommend up to seven winners. Those judges will evaluate the submissions based on the six equally weighted judging criteria. 

 

Does receipt of a prior KidneyX prize have any impact on eligibility or the likelihood of winning this challenge?

Receipt of a prior KidneyX prize does not impact eligibility for the KidneyX Sustainability Prize or the likelihood of being selected as a winner.

What is the IP stance of the KidneyX Sustainability Prize?

By participating in this Challenge, each Participant (whether an individual, team, or entity) warrants that they are the sole author or owner of, or have the right to use, any copyrightable works that the submission comprises, that the works are wholly original with the Participant (or are an improved version of an existing work that the Participant has sufficient rights to use and improve), and that the submission does not infringe any copyright or any other rights of any third party of which the Participant is aware.  

By participating in this Challenge, each participant (whether an individual, team, or entity) grants to HHS an irrevocable, paid-up, royalty-free nonexclusive worldwide license to reproduce, publish, post, link to, share, and display publicly the submission on the web or elsewhere, and a non-exclusive, non-transferable, irrevocable, paid-up license to practice, or have practiced for or on its behalf, the solution throughout the world.  Each Participant will retain all other intellectual property rights in their submissions, as applicable. To participate in the Challenge, each Participant must warrant that there are no legal obstacles to providing the above-referenced nonexclusive licenses of the Participant’s rights to the Federal government.  To receive an award, Participants will not be required to transfer their intellectual property rights to HHS, but Participants must grant to the Federal government the nonexclusive licenses recited herein.  

Please visit the rules here. 

 

Can winners commercialize their solutions in the future? 

Please visit the rules here.

 

Can my submission include results created using Federal grant funds?  

Submissions may include results that were created in the past using Federal grant funds. However, participants (whether individuals, teams, or entities) may not use Federal funds from a grant award or cooperative agreement to develop their Challenge submissions or to fund efforts in support of their Challenge submissions. 

 

Will submissions be treated confidentially?

We encourage participants to review the full rules of the challenge to ensure they understand how their submissions may be used and shared. 

 

Will the judges sign non-disclosure agreements?

Yes. KidneyX Sustainability Prize judges will be required to sign non-disclosure agreements.

How can I stay informed about the KidneyX Sustainability Prize?

To receive updates on the KidneyX Sustainability Prize, you can subscribe to our newsletter.

 

I have a question not answered on this page. Who can I contact?

Answers to many questions may be found in the challenge announcement here. 

For any other questions or concerns, you may contact the challenge team by emailing [email protected].