After contracting Covid-19 in December 2020, Anne, a 61-year-old nurse in Boston, still doesn't feel like her old self. She tires easily and has to meticulously record everything she has to do each day so she doesn't forget. She's more irritable than she used to be, and has trouble focusing for extended periods of time.
Anne, who asked for her last name to be withheld to protect her privacy, is>What is long Covid?
Though long Covid can feel isolating, Anne is far from alone. While state health departments and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention do not track case counts, recent research indicates 10% to 15% of people who had a case of Covid-19 also develop long Covid symptoms. In the U.S., that could equate to over 11 million people. Other estimates double that figure in the U.S. alone.
Like Covid itself, the condition doesn't discriminate, affecting people young and old, previously healthy and with pre-existing conditions, says David Putrino, director of Rehabilitation Innovation for Mount Sinai Health System.
The illness presents itself in different ways depending data-test=”Pullquote”>Long Covid care is no joke. Symptoms are debilitating and extremely concerning.David PutrinoMount Sinai
"Long Covid care is no joke. Symptoms are debilitating and extremely concerning," says Putrino.
In fact, other studies suggest that about 1.1 million Americans may not be working due to long Covid at any given time, contributing to the current labor shortage in the U.S. That doesn't take into account those who have reduced their hours, gone part-time or taken a demotion — and likely a pay cut — because of their illness.
The hardest part of the past 14 months for Anne has been her inability to carry out all of the work duties she previously performed for decades without issue as a discharge nurse, like managing multiple caseloads at>A disruption to life as we know it
Like Anne, Ken Todd has suffered from long Covid for a full year. Before, the 53-year-old routinely ran marathons; now, he's lucky to get outside of his New York City apartment for a walk around the neighborhood. Todd's energy depletes quickly; it is difficult for him to read or look at a computer screen for longer than a few minutes at a time without getting dizzy.
That impedes his ability to perform all of the duties for his job in marketing at a media company in New York where he has worked for 25 years. He went>A life-changing disability
Much remains unknown about long Covid, including how long it might last, or if patients will relapse once they feel better, says Mount Sinai's Putrino. That's another worry for patients like Anne.
"There is no health-care provider who can tell any Covid long-hauler if we will ever recover, or if there are long-term health implications down the road," says Anne. "You are healthy one day until you are not, and that is a big adjustment."
And costs will vary for each patient, depending on their symptoms, how long they last and their severity; the patient's insurance; where they are treated; if and how their jobs are affected; and myriad other factors. Some patients owe a few hundred dollars after medical care, while others are stuck with bills for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In the U.S., all of that is amplified for the 8.6% of the population without health insurance coverage. To avoid costly medical bills, they may forego care they need altogether, which could exacerbate the effects of long Covid down the road. Considering low-income Americans were hit harder by Covid-19 than richer Americans, this is concerning, says Putrino.
What is clear is that policy makers, health professionals and employers need to continue to take the condition seriously, says Putrino.
One of the best things employers could do to help workers with long Covid is to work with them so that their work responsibilities are easily manageable and don't trigger their symptoms, he says, like Todd's employer has. And because long Covid falls under the Americans with Disabilities Act, employers must make a reasonable attempt to change the work environment so that employees with the condition can do their jobs.
"What we need to do moving forward is make sure that workplaces are understanding and not ableist, so that individuals with long Covid can continue to maintain jobs," Putrino says.
Todd says he hopes everyone realizes the toll that the condition can take on those suffering from it — especially on those less fortunate than him, who do not have health insurance, or who work physically demanding jobs.
"If I worked in a warehouse having to do physical activity, I couldn't do it," Todd says. "This is a life-changing disability."
