Clinical Trial Tweaks Forced by Virus Should Stay, Hahn Says

The remote monitors and telehealth check-ins made necessary by the coronavirus could become permanent fixtures of new clinical trials going forward, FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said.

The pandemic has delayed or even stopped clinical trials unrelated to Covid-19, including a study testing a Novartis AG cholesterol drug. It has also forced doctors to rely more on telehealth to treat patients. Hahn said those experiences should inform how the Food and Drug Administration updates a clinical trial system agency leaders have previously described as “clunky” and broken.

“How do we revise, modify, or modernize, ...