Clinical trial NCT05185687: Public Support for COVID-19 Test Allocation
Official title: Race, Status, Vaccines, Tests, and Place: Public Attitudes and Support for Equitable COVID-19 Vaccine and Test Allocation
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Health Equity
COVID-19
Keywords: Allocation of Healthcare Resources
Lead sponsor: University of Pennsylvania
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2022-01-11
Enrollment: 2019
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Brief summary: In a randomized survey experiment, investigators will assess public support or opposition towards one of three potential government plans for allocating at-home coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) tests to United States residents: 1) first come, first served; 2) a random draw; or 3) a random draw with 20% of tests reserved for disadvantaged areas. Investigators will also examine public attitudes surrounding other logistical and equity-related aspects of these allocation plans.

Detailed description: Complementing other efforts to increase access to COVID-19 testing in the United States, the federal government recently announced the purchase of 500,000,000 at home COVID-19 to be distributed for free "to Americans that want them". A central logistical element in matching supply with demand will be a website, on which people will register their interest in getting tests delivered to their home address. However, it is still unclear how supply will be matched with demand. Three main candidate options are first come, first served (FCFS), in which people are sent tests in the order in which they make requests; a random draw, such as a lottery; or a combination of a random draw with a guaranteed reserved amount for more disadvantaged populations. FCFS is a widely known and practiced rationing principle, but it has shown to exacerbate inequities in, for example, the allocation of vaccine appointments. Random draws can mitigate this impact, but, in the present context, might be insufficiently sensitive to the fact that not everyone has internet access, and that the need for testing is greater among more disadvantaged communities. Combining a lottery with a disadvantage reserve system using measures such as the CDC's Social Vulnerability Index is a practical way of promoting equity, and it was already used by the majority of US states in allocating vaccines. The main objective of this study is to assess public support for each of these three allocation plans and describe differences by demographic characteristics. Investigators will also assess public attitudes toward specific details of these allocation plans. The study, which is expected to take approximately 5 minutes to complete, will be administered as part of an omnibus online survey.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Aged 18 years old or older, United States resident

Exclusion Criteria:

* None

Primary outcomes:
measure: Support for allocation plan
timeFrame: 5 minutes
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Household-level test allocation preference
timeFrame: 5 minutes
measure: Tests allocated to disadvantaged areas
timeFrame: 5 minutes
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Washington
country: United States
facility: Harris Insights & Analytics
state: District of Columbia
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Pennsylvania
name: Alison M Buttenheim, PhD, MBA
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: