Working sick: Americans with long COVID struggle to make a living

This is part one of a series on long COVID-19.

Paid sick leave for COVID dwindles, impacting the most vulnerable employees.

By Larry Buhl for Capital & Main

Late last month, Congress passed a bill to end the COVID-19 national emergency three years after it was declared, with the rationale that daily deaths and hospitalizations are way down from their peaks. But while fewer people are dying or in the ICU, the pandemic has left millions who recovered from the initial COVID infection only to experience long-term effects, or long COVID, refuting the notion that a public health emergency is over.

Last year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 7.5% of the adult U.S. population, or about 19 million people, had long COVID, and that 20% of adults 18-64 who recovered from their initial COVID infection have experienced at least one health condition that may be attributable to long COVID.

Long COVID was recognized as a disability by the Department of Health and Human Services in 2021. But specific help for COVID “long-haulers” in the workplace—including flexible hours, sick leave, and the ability to work from home—depends on the generosity of the employer. And nearly half of workers with long COVID say their employers either didn’t offer paid sick leave or weren’t making workplace accommodations for their illness, according to a report released last year. Without policies like paid time off for illness, American workers face a financial burden to the tune of more than $500 billion, according to a report by the Solve Long Covid Initiative.