A free genetic testing program that mailed cheek-swab kits to Alabamians in every corner of the state has officially closed its doors to new participants. Catalyst, the Southern Research-led initiative that launched in October 2024, stopped accepting new enrollments on September 30, after reaching more than 9,400 participants across all 67 Alabama counties.
The program, which Southern Research describes as a public health initiative offering free clinical genetic testing to eligible Alabama residents, according to Catalyst by Southern Research, was built to put genetic insight within reach of people who might otherwise never get it. Any Alabama resident 19 or older could enroll, and the process started with a kit mailed to their home. Participants used it to collect a cheek swab and sent it back for testing, a method the program's current materials describe, though Broad Institute notes that Catalyst's own description of its collection method has evolved since launch — an earlier 2024 report from al.com described the process as a blood draw done through a participant's healthcare provider rather than an at-home swab.
As detailed by Bham Now, Catalyst collected more than 5,600 samples and held more than 400 community events in the course of its run. Those events, combined with the mail-in kits, were the backbone of an effort to reach not just Birmingham's medical corridor but rural pockets of the state where specialists and testing options are harder to come by.
What Participants Actually Learned
Each completed test produced a report covering 84 clinically actionable genes, according to Catalyst by Southern Research, along with medication-response information tied to more than 70 commonly prescribed drugs. Per Bham Now, those reports flagged inherited risk factors for conditions including heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers, alongside pharmacogenomic findings meant to show how a person's genes might affect their response to specific medications. The insights were designed to be shareable with a participant's own doctor to help guide treatment decisions.
For two participants named in Bham Now's reporting, the results were personal. Mallie's account touched on her family history and genetic markers. Katie learned she carried a pathogenic variant linked to an increased risk of breast, ovarian and pancreatic cancers. Every participant who completed testing also gained access to a free 30-minute genetic counseling session with a licensed genetic counselor once results came back, a benefit confirmed on the For Participants page of the program's website. Most people received their results six to eight weeks after the lab received their sample, though the program notes some results take up to 10 weeks.
The People Behind the Program
The People Behind the Program Catalyst aimed to make clinical-grade genetic testing free and easy for anyone in Alabama. Participants could gain a clearer picture of inherited risks and which medications might work best for them. Southern Research has said the program also gave researchers a broader view of health patterns across the state that could shape future public health efforts.
The initiative was funded through grant money from the State of Alabama and the City of Birmingham. Southern Research received $20 million in state American Rescue Plan Act funds plus $5 million in ARPA funds from Birmingham to support the program's development and launch, according to Southern Research. Catalyst enrolled its first participants in March 2025, per the Broad Institute, roughly five months after its public unveiling.
Closing Enrollment, Not Access
As of September 30, Catalyst is no longer accepting new participant enrollments, according to Catalyst by Southern Research's own site. But that cutoff doesn't erase what's already been collected. Anyone who enrolled before the deadline will continue to have access to their results through the participant portal, the program states — a point Bham Now's reporting also confirms for eligible enrollees.
Southern Research has framed Catalyst as part of a broader push to close healthcare gaps in Alabama, particularly in rural communities where access to specialists and advanced diagnostics is limited, according to Health News of Alabama. The program was also designed to put genetic-testing technology within reach of underserved communities, not just urban medical centers, as Southern Research put it when the initiative launched.
A Bigger Play for Clinical Trials
Beyond individual health reports, Catalyst offered participants opportunities to join relevant clinical trials, a feature Southern Research says could help the state capture more of a clinical-trial industry projected to reach $80 billion by 2030, according to Alabama Reflector. That same report noted that more than 90% of existing clinical-trial participants nationally have been described as white males, underscoring why diversifying who takes part in research has been part of the pitch behind programs like this one.
Catalyst isn't the only such effort underway. The Alabama Genomic Health Initiative, running since 2017, has provided genetic testing to more than 10,000 Alabamians across all 67 counties, according to UAB. That program introduced pharmacogenomic testing of its own in 2021 and has since delivered those results to 2,522 individuals. Similar efforts have taken shape elsewhere, including South Carolina's In Our DNA SC project, which has reached participants in all 46 counties there and screened more than 50,000 adults for inherited risks.
For now, Catalyst's enrollment window has closed, but the data it gathered — and the people who found answers in their own genes because of it — will keep shaping how Southern Research and the state think about genetic health access going forward.
