Project Covalence
blog.samaltman.com
Project Covalence
1–10 of 33 posts
Re: Project Covalence
#2Good luck with that, Sam.
Re: Project Covalence
#3Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway...
> Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems.
What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... piece of software to coordinate things? A physical machine? Else?
Re: Project Covalence
#4Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway... > Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems. What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... pie…
> supports trial execution, 21 CFR Part 11 compliant remote data collection, telemedicine, biostatistics, sample kits for at-home specimen collection, and protocol writing.
Does that not make sense to people in this field?
Re: Project Covalence
#5I've actually been wondering as covid19 winds down and people's lived experiences no longer perceive it as the doom and gloom threat it once held sway with, if given that perception whether the market rewards will continue to stand and attract massive investments in pursuit of a vaccine where the rewards may not outweigh the risks.
I would think that would be a pretty strong signal that covid is not as large a risk if big industries don't think it worthwhile to pursue any longer. Along those lines of thinking have any of the big pharmaceutical companies given serious pursuit of a vaccine or is it mainly smaller outfits?
Re: Project Covalence
#6Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway... > Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems. What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... pie…
> supports trial execution, 21 CFR Part 11 compliant remote data collection, telemedicine, biostatistics, sample kits for at-home specimen collection, and protocol writing. Does that not make sense to people in this field?
Who and what field? If you mean programmers and regular HN visitors then no, those words have no meaning for me. What does each one mean and why is it important for running medical trials? Other than protocol writing, which sounds like a list of rules, I have no idea what the rest means or why it would be important in a trial.
Re: Project Covalence
#7Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway... > Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems. What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... pie…
I looked at the site
> Participate in a clinical trial at no cost to you or your health insurance.
Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything? The pitch doesn't make sense to me. I always assumed medical trials were free for the participants. No idea who their target demographic is which makes me suspicious already.
Re: Project Covalence
#8Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway... > Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems. What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... pie…
I looked at the site > Participate in a clinical trial at no cost to you or your health insurance. Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything? The pitch doesn't make sense to me. I always assumed medical trials were free for the participants. No idea who their target demographic is which makes me suspicious already.
> Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything?
To cover for the possible adverse effects
Re: Project Covalence
#9Earlier quoted context omitted.
I looked at the site > Participate in a clinical trial at no cost to you or your health insurance. Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything? The pitch doesn't make sense to me. I always assumed medical trials were free for the participants. No idea who their target demographic is which makes me suspicious already.
> Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything? To cover for the possible adverse effects
Yes. That's not my question. Are you saying drug trials don't cover such costs and that this is standard? Because that's the pitch the company is making and it sounds odd
> We put the patient in the driver’s seat before, during, and after a trial. Because it’s not just doctors who help build a healthier future. It’s patients. And it’s time to do right by them.
It sounds like they're saying, "patients are treated very badly and we're here to fix that problem". How bad is it to be in a drug trial currently? Are trial participants really treated with neglect? I don't understand what actual problem they're addressing.
Re: Project Covalence
#10Hmm, sounds more like a PR statement rather than the usual (insightful) posts that Sam writes. Anyway... > Project Covalence’s platform, powered by TrialSpark, is uniquely optimized to support COVID-19 trials, which are ideally run in community settings or at the patient’s home to reduce the burden placed on hospitals and health systems. What's a "platform" in this case? I'd love to read simpler words. Is it a... pie…
I looked at the site > Participate in a clinical trial at no cost to you or your health insurance. Why would health insurance be involved when running medical trials and why would it cost anything? The pitch doesn't make sense to me. I always assumed medical trials were free for the participants. No idea who their target demographic is which makes me suspicious already.
The FDA forbids charging for any medication or medical device that isn't approved so medical trials are free by definition, but the Affordable Care Act requires health insurers to cover routine cost of care incurred during qualified trials. In a Phase I trial under medical supervision, for example, might not cost the patient's insurance anything but a Phase 3 trial for chemotherapy might cost a ton just to deal with side effects and drug administration.
As all things healthcare, it's complicated.