Health

Moderna begins first Phase 3 of COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial in the U.S.

Jacksonville, FL — A potential COVID-19 vaccine has been found to induce the immune response in COVID-19 candidates.

The company Moderna partnered with the National Institute of Health for its COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial. Vice President Mike Pence was accompanied by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at the University of Miami Monday to announce Phase 3 of the trial.

“89 sites across America with 30,000 participants will be a part of this phase three clinical trial,” Pence said.

Half of the volunteers will receive two shots of the vaccine, half will receive two shots of placebo. About 500 volunteers register through the Jacksonville Center of Clinical Research.

“We’re all kind of in this together,” Volunteer Denise Crawford said. “Everybody has different issues that you need to trace and follow.”

The local center told Action News Jax they received a shipment of supplies Monday and hope to start administering it to participates later this week.

“We are still looking for volunteers for the COVID vaccine studies by appointment,” Vice President of Operations, Erin Schellhorn said. “We prioritize patients from diverse backgrounds as well as those in high-risk occupations (healthcare workers, grocery store clerks, bus drivers, etc). We have an evaluation process in place to make sure that appropriate patients are enrolled. It is also important to note that these trials are placebo-controlled.”

Anyone who is interested in participating in the trial can find more here: https://encoredocs.com/