US recruits scientists abroad for Covid-19 vaccine trials, pledges access to supply

WASHINGTON - The Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine project is recruiting scientists in South Africa and Latin America to help test possible vaccines in US-backed clinical trials, pledging to ease their countries' access to any successful products, Reuters has learned.

Tens of thousands of volunteers must be recruited and scientists involved say it makes sense to test the vaccines for safety and effectiveness in diverse populations, including in other nations. US health officials expect a successful vaccine to be identified by early 2021. "There was a concern by the international sites that we are rolling up our sleeves and contributing to the vaccine endeavour, and we don't want to be in a position that these vaccines will be available and our countries can't get them," said Dr Glenda Gray, the president and CEO of the South African Medical Research Council, who is preparing to set up sites for the vaccine developed by J&J's Janssen division.

The US National Institutes of Health, which is helping coordinate the trials, declined to comment. The White House did not immediately respond to questions. He told the scientists late last month that those at-risk groups could be immunised during the first quarter of 2021, the two people familiar with the matter said. After that, he told them, Operation Warp Speed and the companies may arrange for donations or access to vaccine supplies to the countries participating in trials.

"We are a prime site for any vaccine trial," said Gray, a vaccine scientist renowned for her work on HIV."There are a lot of countries that are approaching South Africa."

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