The VA North Texas Health Care System began a clinical trial for the single-dose investigational COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. This is the fourth large-scale COVID-19 vaccine trial in the United States.
Veterans and non-veteran volunteers, including men and non-pregnant women over 18, can enroll in the study at VA North Texas Health Care System, with special focus on Frontline staff and essential workers and Black, Hispanic and Native American volunteers.
The reason the VA is asking minority Veterans to enroll is because the COVID-19 pandemic has affected members of these community at much higher rates than the rest of the population, especially Black, Hispanic and Native American populations.
The more participants from these communities in the study, the better researchers will understand if the investigational vaccine is truly safe and effective for the people who need it most.
You cannot get COVID-19 from the investigational vaccine or the placebo used as part of the study because the investigational vaccine does not contain any live or killed virus. For more information about the Janssen clinical trials, including the investigational vaccine they’re testing, visit www.ensemblestudy.com.
To sign up for the study, visit www.va.gov/coronavirus-research. Signing up for volunteer list does not guarantee enrollment into the trial. Volunteers will be contacted if they appear to meet a trial’s eligibility criteria or seem like a good match for another COVID-19 study at their local VA.
— David Taffet
