If you're one of the millions of Hiffers perpetually broke (I assume millions of you read HIF over each other's shoulder on a single, shared laptop), I know how you feel. However, it could be worse. Imagine if we were also sick on top of being strapped for cash! I know when I was going through chemo, the last thing I needed was another bill.
If you find yourself in a similar boat, one possible method of making a little side money is through paid, legitimate medical research studies. If you have a qualifying illness and live in a needed area, you can apply for a paid clinical trial earning hundreds of dollars!
These types of studies help doctors and research scientists better understand illnesses and diseases as well as find treatments and cures. Some of the studies are demographic while others involve study products or placebos. The trials are run by Acurian, a company who specializes in recruiting potential qualifying candidates for the trials.
When applying for these, I still recommend using your freebie email and freebie phone number. That way, if you change your mind on participating in a trial, you can easily stop any future calls or emails.
While researching Acurian and clinical trials, I came across ClinicalTrials.gov, a searchable database of licensed clinical trials run by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. While many of these do not pay for participation, I've included links to recruiting studies for many of the diagnoses below. When applicable, I also included links to unpaid NIH clinical trials.
As usual, I'm not a professional anything! If you get accepted to a paid study, please make sure to talk it over with your medical doctor first!