The Health Care System Is Not Ready for the Influx of Long COVID Patients
Across the U.S., people with acute COVID-19 are clamoring for medical attention from health care providers. But so are many people who cleared the infection many months ago.
Long COVID is a mysterious condition that can cause wide-ranging symptoms in people who have been infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus: brain fog, swollen joints, fatigue, tremors, and much more. Anyone who gets infected with the virus can develop them, and as infections continue to surge, Long COVID patients are a fast-growing part of the U.S. patient population.
But even as Long COVID clinics are opening across the country to meet this growing demand, clinicians still struggle to keep up. Dr. Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez, who in August 2020 launched the Post-COVID Recovery Clinic at University Health and UT Health San Antonio, called it “the worst of times” in her testimony this afternoon at a hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives' Ways and Means Health Subcommittee. “We are seeing enormous resource strains,” she said. “Everyone suffers, wait lists are upwards of six months, and action needs to be taken to support the health care workforce for these clinics, along with research and treatments.”
In this week's TIME cover story, my colleague Jamie Ducharme spotlights how Long COVID patients in the U.S. are struggling to get care in an understaffed, overwhelmed health care system. "I've been reporting on Long COVID since the summer of 2020," says Jamie. "In nearly every interview I've done with people living with this condition, they've described long and frustrating roads to treatment."
These patients are suffering from a new, complex illness, and they often require care across multiple medical specialties, including pulmonology, psychiatry, and gastroenterology. There is no cure for Long COVID yet, and traditional primary care practices aren't set up to handle that level of care. With a personnel shortage that has plagued medicine since before the pandemic, the timing couldn't be worse. As a result, long waits are the norm for patients who need help now.
But people who are lucky enough to get quality care can feel better. Jamie spoke with Amber and Mike Rausch, a married couple who were both patients at Benefis Health System’s Post-COVID-19 Recovery Program in Montana. After undergoing many rounds of testing and nightly oxygen treatments, "I feel 10 times better,” Mike told Jamie.
Unfortunately, clinics like the one at which the Rausches found help remain few and far between in the U.S.—which means many others may not get the same chance at recovery anytime soon. "We're about to see a mass disabling event from post-viral illnesses, something that has been ignored for far too long," said Liza Fisher, a member of Long Covid Alliance in Houston, Texas, who testified today before the House subcommittee. Fisher hasn’t been able to work since contracting COVID-19 in 2020 and losing her ability to walk due to Long COVID. “Although you only hear my voice right now, it is the voice of many."
More than 384.8 million people around the world had been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of 12 a.m. E.T. today, and 5.7 million people have died. On Feb. 2, there were more than 3.1 million new cases and 12,294 new deaths confirmed globally.
Here's how the world as a whole is currently trending, in terms of cases:
And in terms of deaths:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
And here's every country that has reported over 5 million cases:
The U.S. had recorded more than 75.6 million coronavirus cases as of 12 a.m. E.T. today. More than 894,000 people have died. On Feb. 2, there were 330,128 new cases and 3,546 new deaths confirmed in the U.S.
Here's how the country as a whole is currently trending in terms of cases:
And in terms of deaths:
Here's where daily cases have risen or fallen over the last 14 days, shown in confirmed cases per 100,000 residents:
All numbers unless otherwise specified are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of Feb. 3, 12 a.m. E.T. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
Medicare will soon begin reimbursing people for at-home rapid COVID-19 tests, CNN reports—up to eight tests per month per covered person. The coverage will reportedly begin this spring. The Biden Administration required private health insurers to cover the costs of at-home tests starting in January, but Medicare was not put under the same obligations. Indeed, Medicare hasn't been forced to cover over-the-counter tests of any kind before, but "in the weeks ahead, we'll be working diligently on behalf of people with Medicare to set up a process for them to receive free over-the-counter tests through eligible pharmacies and other participating entities," Dr. Meena Seshamani, director of the Center for Medicare, told CNN.
A growing number of countries are loosening some of their pandemic restrictions, despite the fact that the virus continues to circulate widely. Earlier this week, Denmark and Norway ditched certain COVID-19 restrictions, and Sweden today joined its Scandinavian neighbors. As the Associated Press reports, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson announced today that "it is time to open Sweden again," and that, starting Feb. 9, restaurants will fully open, and Swedes will no longer be required to show proof of vaccination or wear face masks on public transportation. Cases in the country are increasing, but hospital burden is not; about 80% of Swedes over age 50 are fully vaccinated and boosted.
New Zealand is opening its borders after almost two years, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said today. Vaccinated New Zealanders currently in Australia can return to their home country starting in February, and citizens elsewhere can return in March, the BBC reported. The rest of the world will then be allowed inside in stages: international students first, followed by visa-free travelers and, finally, in October, all other visitors.
Novavax's COVID-19 shot, called Nuvaxovid, has been approved for adults to use in Britain, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced today. The two-dose vaccine is now the fifth COVID-19 vaccine authorized in the U.K. "Our approval of Nuvaxovid today follows a rigorous review of the safety, quality and effectiveness of this vaccine, and expert advice from the government’s independent scientific advisory body, the Commission on Human Medicines," said June Raine, chief executive of MHRA, in a statement.
Thanks for reading. We hope you find the Coronavirus Brief newsletter to be a helpful tool to navigate this very complex situation, and welcome feedback at coronavirus.brief@time.com. If you have specific questions you'd like us to answer, please send them to covidquestions@time.com.
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Today's newsletter was written by Mandy Oaklander and edited by Elijah Wolfson.
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