On Aug. 19, 2021, Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) announced that it was part of a randomized, controlled clinical trial intended to determine whether convalescent plasma — the liquid portion of blood collected from patients who have recovered from COVID-19 — is effective in fighting infection caused by the novel coronavirus.

Nationwide, the trial aimed to recruit a total of 600 people with relatively mild symptoms of COVID-19, then test whether convalescent plasma was effective in preventing the disease from progressing to severe illness or death.