Volunteers Lining Up to Test Swine Flu Vaccine

Filed under Swine Flu Vaccine |

Since they put out the call for volunteers to test the swine flu last Wednesday, hundreds of people have volunteered. Saint Louis University says it has received more than 500 calls and emails from people willing to be the first to roll up their sleeves.

"This response has been exceptionally strong," Nancy Solomon, a spokeswoman for the university's medical center, told CNN Radio. "We haven't had that strong of a response to our call for volunteers since we conducted our small pox vaccine research after September 11."

They are looking for both children and adults for the program. Volunteers will receive between $50 and $100 per visit and several visits are necessary.

It's troubling to think that, given the difficult financial straits many people are in right now, some parents might be lured into volunteering their children for the trial in order to make some extra cash. I personally believe there is an ethical problem in paying for this sort of thing when children are involved.