Why Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine trial hit a snag

Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial has hit a roadblock. Moderna (NSDQ:MRNA) learned that contractors it had hired failed to recruit sufficient numbers of minorities for the 30,000-person study, according to a Reuters report.

The lack of Black, Latinos and Native American patients led the company to tap academic researchers with ties to diverse communities.

Moderna didn’t not immediately respond to a request for comment from Drug Discovery & Development.

As of September 17, African Americans comprised 7% of trial participants, yet the make-up roughly the proportion of the U.S. population is 13%.

The company announced on October 22 that its trial was fully enrolled its trial, with 30,000 participants — 37% of which are minorities.

According to the CDC, COVID-19 disproportionately affects several ethnic groups. African Americans, for instance, are 2.6 times more likely to contract the virus than non-Hispanic whites.

Moderna is making progress in recruiting minorities. As of October 16, 2020, roughly 36% of cumulatively enrolled trial participants enrolled hailed from minority communities.