Moderna Says Its on Track to Begin Phase 3 COVID-19 Trial

Moderna is refuting reports of a delay this month in the upcoming phase 3 trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate mRNA-1273.

“The trial is still expected to begin in July, and we expect to be the first to start a phase 3 trial,” the company said via Twitter.

The Massachusetts drugmaker did not deny reports that it was making changes in the trial’s protocol, which could cause a delay. But the company emphasized that the large-scale study, which is expected to enroll 30,000 participants in the U.S., would go ahead this month. (DID, June 12).

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago, one of the many study sites, originally said that the trial would get under way July 9. Moderna is no longer specifying what date the trial will start this month.

Moderna added that it has “worked closely” with the National Institutes of Health and the Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed on the final protocol so that the trial will launch this month.  

Moderna’s vaccine candidate is in the top three short-listed by Operation Warp Speed for accelerated development with the goal of producing an effective vaccine by the end of the year. — Jordan Williams