Novavax Inc. NVAX,
said Monday it is beginning a late stage trial of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate with plans to enroll up to 30,000 volunteers at approximately 115 locations in the US and Mexico. The trial is supported by partners of Operation Warp Speed, the federal government program that aims to rapidly develop vaccines and therapies, including the Department of Defense and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health . (NIH), and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response. Barda is providing up to $ 1.6 billion to fund the trial under an agreement from the Department of Defense. The trial will be randomized, placebo-controlled and evaluating the efficacy of the treatment, called NVX-CoV2373, in patients 18 years of age and older. Shares were slightly higher on Monday, rising more than 3,000% in 2020 in hopes of the vaccine.