Australia is a new vaccine trial hotspot: Are you eligible?

Emeritus Research Chief Development Officer Brayden Fraser said thousands of people are keen to be in its Covid-19 vaccine trials. “It looks like Australia is becoming a hotspot for these type of trials,” Mr Fraser said.He said he gets almost weekly requests from drug manufacturers to run vaccine trials against a range of viruses including Covid-19. The next Covid-19 vaccine trial opening will be in November and it is understood it could be a combined Covid-19 and flu shot study. Emeritus, which has run clinical trials for a range of medications for more than 20 years, is currently running five vaccine trials, including two for Covid-19. One is a six-month Omicron-specific study. “People’s understanding of clinical trials is a lot greater than prior to Covid. People seem to be slightly more comfortable with clinical trials,” Mr Fraser said.“Even for other vaccine areas … as a country it’s been really attractive to do [trials here].“People just want to be helping the community as much as they can.”Interest for clinical trails in other therapeutic areas has alsos “significantly increased” since Covid-19, he added.NED-6507-Covid-Booster-GuideMr Fraser said vaccine trials were easier to be involved in because the eligibility criteria was not as specific as clinical trials for new treatments for other conditions. In most cases, people can participate if they have had all of their booster shots, but it depends on the individual study. For some studies, the timing of a person’s previous jab, either for Covid-19 or influenza, could include or exclude them, he explained. Those who participate will be reimbursed for their time and travel expenses. Research into Covid-19 vaccines was fast-tracked in an effort to save millions of lives. The first vaccines were rolled out in 2020 to countries hit the hardest, including England and the US. Australia followed, with most people receiving two jabs in 2021. Since then, more than 61 million doses have been given to Australians, with more than 95 per cent of the population having received two. As of Tuesday, children under five have also been approved by Australia’s medical regulator to get the Moderna vaccine. For more details on trials, go to Emeritus Research.