A medic looks at his phone as he walks outside of Emergency at Coral Gables Hospital where Coronavirus patients are treated in Coral Gables near Miami, on July 30, 2020. – Florida has emerged as a major new epicenter of the US battle against the disease, with confirmed cases recently surpassing New York and now second only to California. The state toll has leapt over the past week and more than 6,500 people have died from the disease there, according to health officials. More than 460,000 people have been infected with the virus in Florida, which has a population of 21 million, and a quarter of the state’s cases are in Miami. The US has tallied a total of 151,826 deaths from COVID-19, making it the hardest-hit country in the world. (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP) (Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
If you're an adult living in the United States, you can now go online to volunteer to be included in clinical trials of Covid-19 vaccine candidates, and potentially receive an experimental vaccine or antibody prevention therapy not yet available to the general public.
The process at CoronaVirusPreventionNetwork.org begins with filling out a questionnaire for screening. Applying does not guarantee you will be accepted in a trial.
During his testimony Friday to the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Crisis, r. Anthony Fauci, made a pitch for registering "so you can be part of the solution of this terrible scourge."
The COVID-19 Prevention Network (CoVPN) was formed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), of which Dr. Fauci is director. Its mission is to "conduct Phase 3 efficacy trials for COVID-19 vaccines and monoclonal antibodies," according to the network's website.
As of Thursday night, a quarter million people had already registered, Fauci said. Ultimately the registry expects to gather a million and a half volunteers, according to the consent form.
It is currently recruiting volunteers for the Phase 3 trial of Moderna's mRNA-1273 vaccine candidate. That trial is intended to encompass 30,000 people, Fauci said. Future trials could also draw on the list.
Fauci is "cautiously optimistic" that a covid vaccine candidate may be prove safe and effective by "late fall or early winter," after which it could become available to the general public.
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More than 4.5 million tests in the United States have been positive for COVID-19 infection, more than any other nation. There are treatments, but as of yet no proven cure or preventive.
