ED: A NEW COVID VACCINE TRIAL TO TEST THE EFFICACY OF A BOOSTER SHOT IS JUST WEEKS AWAY FROM ENROLLING PARTICIPANTS. HEREO T EXPLAIN IS A PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR FOR ONE OF THE STUDY SITES, DR. ROBERT FINBERG, PROFESSOR OF MEDINECI AT U-MASS MEDICAL SCHOOL IN WORCESTER LET'S TALK ABOUT THIS. YOU'RE DOING THIS STUDY WITH PFIZ.ER WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THIS BOOSTER SH?OT >> OKAY, THE BOOSTER SHOT IS REALLY THE SAME AS THE PREVIOUS TWO SHOTS. THE STUDY IS DESIGN TO DETERMINE WHETHER A BOOSTER SHOTOR F PEOPLE WHO ARE POST-SIX MONTHS IS SAFE WITHOUT SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS AND DOES ANY GOOD. THE IDEA IS TO SEE WHETHER GETTING A BOOSTER SHOT VERSUS GETTING A PLACEBO WILL LEAD TO FERWE CASES OF COVID SIX MONTHS AFTER PEOPLE HAVE BEEN VACCINATED. EMILY: WE UNDERSTAND THAT YOU PLAN TO ENROLL ABOUT PARTICIPANTS BY THE END OF JULY. E ARYOU LOOKING FOR LOCAL VOLUNTEERS? AND ARE YOU FOCUSING ON A SPECIFIC AGE GROUP OR CO-MORBIDITY? 100 >> THIS STUDY IS LIMITED TO THOSE WHO VOLUNTEERED FOR THE ORIGALIN STUDY. WHICH WE DID LAST FALL. AS PART OF WORLDWIDE STUDY OF SAN FR,04600 PEOPLE. ED: WE'VE HEARD MANY TIMES THAT THE VACCINES, ESPECIALLY THE ONES FROM PFIZER AND MODERNA, OFFER VERY GOOD PROTECTION AGAINST THE VARIAN.TS SO WHY DO WE NEED TO TEST A BOOSTE >> WE DON'T NEED TO BUT IT'S PROBABLY A GOOD IDEA. THERE ARE TEST TUBE DATA THAT SUGGEST THAT THIS VACCINE LIKE MA VACCINES, MAY DECREASE CERTAIN IMME FUNCTIONS. SINCE WE HAVE VERY LITTLE EXPERIENCE WITH EITHERF O THIS VACCINE OR THE VIRUS, THIS SEEM LIKE A GDOO TIME. EMIL Y:NOW TO THE DELTA VARIANT, TODAY THE CEFHI SCIENTISTS FOR THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION SAID, SHE EXPECTS THE DANGEROUS DELTA VARIANT TO BECOME THE DOMINANT STRAIN INHE T WORLD. WHAT COULD BE THE IMPACT TO THE U.S. IF THAT HAP?PE >> DEPENDS HOW WELL WE DO WITH THE VACCINATION. LOOKS LEIK THE GOOD NSEW IS PEOPLE THAT ARE FULLY VACCINATED ARE RESISTENT TO GETTING DISEASE WITH THIS VARIANT. IF WE GET ALL OF OUR PEOPLE VACCINATED, WE WILL SAVE LESIV AND WE W