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RECOVER at Mid-Year: 2026 Progress and What's Ahead
RECOVER COVID Initiative (NIH-funded)
July 1, 2026

An update on NIH RECOVER-TLC treatment trials, including baricitinib, low-dose naltrexone, semaglutide, and stellate ganglion block.

An analysis argues Long COVID research was slowed by forcing it into a biomedical framework built for acute infections, enabling its 2025 federal defunding.

Latino Farmworkers Face High Rates of Long COVID but Barriers Delay Diagnosis
Monica Carrillo-Casas, Washington State Standard
April 25, 2026

41.2% of Latino agricultural workers experience long COVID, but distance from care and lack of insurance steeply delay diagnosis.

COVID-19 and POTS: Is There a Link?
Dr. Christina Kokorelis, Johns Hopkins Medicine
March 26, 2026

A Johns Hopkins rehabilitation specialist explains how some people recovering from COVID-19 develop POTS, a disorder of the autonomic nervous system.

Long COVID Clinical Guidance
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
March 9, 2026

CDC's guidance for clinicians on symptom-focused, patient-centered Long COVID treatment plans, with a dedicated section on managing PEM.

Clinical Overview of Long COVID
CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
March 9, 2026

The CDC's clinician-facing definition of Long COVID as a chronic condition present at least three months post-infection, with possible causes and risk factors.

About 80% of U.S. long COVID specialty clinics have closed as of 2025, driven by funding cuts, provider burnout, and the lack of approved treatments.

RECOVER Research Update: December 2025
NIH RECOVER Initiative
December 3, 2025

A roundup of five recent RECOVER studies, including limited Paxlovid effectiveness at preventing Long COVID and how obesity may shape symptom presentation.

A RECOVER-EHR cohort study found reinfected children and teens were roughly twice as likely to be diagnosed with Long COVID as those infected once.

Effect of Low Dose Naltrexone for Long COVID: A Systematic Review
Oyungerel Byambasuren and colleagues (Bond University), medRxiv preprint
September 9, 2025

No completed RCTs of low-dose naltrexone exist yet, but small observational studies report moderate-to-large improvements in fatigue and brain fog.

Autoantibodies in Long COVID: A Systematic Review
The Lancet Infectious Diseases
September 8, 2025

A systematic review of 44 studies found autoantibodies, including those targeting G-protein-coupled receptors, may be a biomarker for Long COVID.

Three trials are testing JAK inhibitor drugs for immune dysregulation believed to underlie some Long COVID symptoms, with mixed patient experiences so far.

A Rare Drug Trial for Long Covid Failed, Yielding Lessons on Study Design
Betsy Ladyzhets (The Sick Times, published via STAT News)
July 22, 2025

Reports on the failure of a BC 007 infusion drug trial for Long COVID and what researchers are learning for future trial design.

The UK's Long COVID clinics fell from a peak of 120 to fewer than half remaining open in 2025 after funding responsibility shifted to local boards.

Long COVID in Young Children, School-Aged Children, and Teens
Rachel S. Gross, Melissa S. Stockwell, et al. (RECOVER-Pediatrics), JAMA Pediatrics
May 27, 2025

The first large multisite study found about 1 in 7 infected infants, toddlers, and preschoolers met criteria for probable Long COVID.

A free clinical guide for providers covering diagnosis, symptom management, and multidisciplinary care for ME/CFS and Long COVID.

Ultrasensitive protein profiling across Swedish and UK cohorts links breathlessness to specific inflammatory biomarkers, pointing to distinct biological subtypes.

A profile of Mount Sinai's Dr. David Putrino on his concerns long COVID could grow into a wider crisis affecting roughly 5% of U.S. adults.

Nirmatrelvir–Ritonavir Versus Placebo–Ritonavir in Individuals With Long COVID in the USA (PAX LC)
Mitsuaki Sawano and colleagues (Yale University), The Lancet Infectious Diseases
April 3, 2025

A placebo-controlled phase 2 trial of a 15-day Paxlovid course in adults with Long COVID found no significant improvement at day 28.

NPR surveys progress in Long COVID science five years into the pandemic, citing new findings on clotting, exercise crashes, and viral persistence.

Reports on progress identifying possible mechanisms while noting no treatments are yet approved and fewer than 50 trials are active.

Post COVID-19 Condition (Long COVID)
World Health Organization (WHO)
February 26, 2025

WHO's official fact sheet on post COVID-19 condition, covering its 200+ possible symptoms and the formal clinical case definition used for diagnosis.

For Many in Washington, Long COVID Care Remains Out of Reach
Megan Burbank, Cascade PBS
February 17, 2025

UW Medicine's clinic is one of the only dedicated long COVID facilities in Washington state, leaving much of the state with little specialized access.

Now Offline: Government Resources About Long COVID as a Disability
Betsy Ladyzhets, The Sick Times
February 11, 2025

Documents which federal long COVID disability/employment resources were taken offline in early 2025, with archived links to the removed content.

Despite $1.15 billion in NIH RECOVER funding, no FDA-approved treatments exist, and advocates argue the program prioritized observation over trials.

Have Long COVID? Here's What to Know About Disability Insurance
Betsy Ladyzhets, The Sick Times (republished by Wisconsin Watch)
December 19, 2024

A disability attorney walks through employer ERISA insurance and Social Security claims, including how to appeal a denial within the 180-day window.

Long COVID: Lasting Effects of COVID-19
Mayo Clinic
August 23, 2024

Mayo Clinic's overview of the 200+ symptoms linked to long COVID and related diagnosable conditions like POTS, ME/CFS, and fibromyalgia.

Long COVID Science, Research and Policy
Ziyad Al-Aly, Hannah Davis, Lisa McCorkell, Letícia Soares, Stephanie Wulf-Hanson, Akiko Iwasaki, Eric J. Topol, Nature Medicine
August 1, 2024

A comprehensive review describing Long COVID as a multisystem disorder affecting nearly every organ system, estimated to affect 400 million people globally.

Long COVID: A Clinical Update
Trisha Greenhalgh, Manoj Sivan, Alice Perlowski, Janko Ž Nikolich, The Lancet
July 31, 2024

A clinical review covering the epidemiology, pathophysiology, lived experience, and management of Long COVID for clinicians.

Long Covid Feels Like a Gun to My Head
Rachel Hall-Clifford, STAT News
June 18, 2024

An Emory global health professor with long COVID describes how, despite medical expertise and specialist access, treatments have brought only partial relief.

The first randomized, placebo-controlled Paxlovid trial for Long COVID found the drug safe but without statistically significant symptom improvement.

Covers the National Academies' SSA-commissioned report framing long COVID as part of a "mass-disabling event" that could strain the benefits system.

Long COVID Brain Fog: What It Is and How to Manage It
Dr. Lindsay McAlpine, Yale Medicine
May 29, 2024

A Yale neurologist explains long COVID brain fog as persistent cognitive impairment and outlines exercise, medication, and pacing-based management strategies.

Resources for People with Long COVID
Administration for Community Living (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)
May 1, 2024

A federal clearinghouse linking to civil-rights guidance, workplace accommodation resources, and disability-network supports for long COVID.

STAT News reports on an NEJM study measuring cognitive deficits equivalent to a 3 to 9-point IQ drop across mild, long, and hospitalized COVID cases.

Notes from the Field: Long COVID Prevalence Among Adults — United States, 2022
Nicole D. Ford, Abraham Agedew, Alexandra F. Dalton, Jordan Singleton, Cria G. Perrine, Sharon Saydah, CDC (MMWR)
February 15, 2024

CDC surveillance data found 6.9% of U.S. adults reported ever experiencing Long COVID in 2022, varying by state, age, and demographics.

Post-Exertional Symptom Exacerbation
Long COVID Physio
January 28, 2024

Explains PESE/PEM, its triggers, and why graded exercise therapy is not recommended for people with post-exertional symptom worsening.

COVID-19 Rapid Guideline: Managing the Long-Term Effects of COVID-19 (NG188)
NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence), UK
January 25, 2024

The UK's official clinical guideline for identifying, assessing, and managing long COVID across its acute, ongoing, and post-COVID-19 syndrome phases.

Muscle Abnormalities Worsen After Post-Exertional Malaise in Long COVID
Brent Appelman et al., Nature Communications
January 4, 2024

A peer-reviewed study provides physiological evidence that patients' muscle structure and metabolic function measurably worsen after PEM is triggered.

Long-Term Health Effects of COVID-19: Disability and Function Following SARS-CoV-2 Infection
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
January 1, 2024

An SSA-commissioned consensus study documenting how long COVID symptoms can prevent return to work for six months to two years or longer.

1,374 Days: My Life With Long Covid
Giorgia Lupi, The New York Times (Opinion)
December 14, 2023

Information designer Giorgia Lupi turned years of daily symptom-tracking into a data-visualization essay depicting life with long COVID day by day.

Still On the Margins: Long COVID Patients of Color
Angela Meriquez Vázquez, Disability Visibility Project
December 2, 2023

A former long-distance runner and Body Politic's former president argues patients of color remain marginalized even within the long COVID advocacy movement.

Resources for Patients, Caregivers, & Advocates
Long-COVID Alliance
October 1, 2023

A patient advocacy hub organizing guidance into provider directories by state, clinical trial info, mental health support, and financial/legal aid.

Long Covid Has Derailed My Life. Make No Mistake: It Could Yours, Too.
Madeline Miller, The Washington Post
August 9, 2023

Novelist Madeline Miller writes about living with long COVID since 2020, and argues ableism underlies public indifference to long-haulers.

Cleveland Clinic's patient-facing overview defining long COVID as any COVID-linked condition persisting three months or longer.

Pacing
Long COVID Physio
June 9, 2023

A patient-led physiotherapist group's guide to pacing as a strategy for balancing activity and rest to avoid triggering post-exertional symptoms.

Long COVID: A Guide for Health Professionals on Providing Medical Evidence for Social Security Disability Claims
U.S. Social Security Administration, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
June 1, 2023

SSA's official guide on exactly what clinical documentation and functional evidence disability examiners look for in long COVID SSDI/SSI claims.

Development of a Definition of Postacute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection
Tanayott Thaweethai, PhD, et al. (NIH RECOVER Initiative), JAMA
May 25, 2023

A peer-reviewed NIH RECOVER study analyzing nearly 10,000 participants to identify the 12 symptoms that best distinguish long COVID.

The EEOC's primary technical-assistance document on COVID-19 workplace disability law, including reasonable accommodation examples for long COVID.

Got Long COVID? Here's What NYC's Private Health Care Can Offer.
Betsy Ladyzhets, Gothamist
February 23, 2023

How NYC patients can access multidisciplinary long COVID care through private hospital systems, and the counterproductive advice some still receive.

WHO's formal clinical case definition of post-COVID-19 condition in children and adolescents, developed via expert Delphi consensus.

What Not to Ask Me About My Long COVID
Jennifer Senior, The Atlantic
February 14, 2023

A wry etiquette guide for how not to talk to long-haulers, from an Atlantic writer who developed long COVID after a mild acute infection.

Explains why "invisible" long COVID symptoms like fatigue and brain fog are harder to get SSDI approval for than cases with visible organ damage.

People With Long Covid Face Barriers to Government Disability Benefits
Betsy Ladyzhets, KFF Health News
November 9, 2022

Reports on systemic obstacles long COVID patients face applying for SSDI/SSI, including years-long delays and high initial denial rates.

Where Are the Long COVID Clinics?
Betsy Ladyzhets, Science News
November 3, 2022

Maps the geographic mismatch between long COVID prevalence and clinic availability, with most of 400+ clinics clustered in major metro areas.

I've Suffered From 'Long COVID' for 2 Years. It's Wrecked My Life.
Karyn Bishof, Business Insider
October 25, 2022

A former firefighter-paramedic describes spending 85% of her time in bed and founding a long-hauler advocacy organization after losing her career.

A former Baltimore teacher describes losing her job, vision, and 30 pounds while doctors repeatedly dismissed her symptoms.

Household Pulse Survey data shows long COVID rates are disproportionately higher among women, transgender adults, and Hispanic adults.

Ed Yong explains that long COVID brain fog is fundamentally a disorder of executive function, not simple forgetfulness — and why it's so often dismissed.

An influential economic analysis estimates 2 to 4 million working-age Americans are out of work due to long COVID, costing $170-230 billion a year.

A science journalist wrestles with whether her roughly three-month recovery even counts as "long COVID" given competing official definitions.

A writer describes how 14+ months of debilitating symptoms shifted her husband into primary caregiver, and how the couple worked to reconnect.

Guidance on "Long COVID" as a Disability Under the ADA, Section 504, and Section 1557
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Office for Civil Rights) and U.S. Department of Justice (Civil Rights Division)
July 26, 2021

The official joint federal guidance explaining that long COVID can qualify as a disability under the ADA if it substantially limits a major life activity.

NPR follows a nurse whose long-haul symptoms went unexplained for months before a POTS diagnosis finally gave her a path to treatment.

Describes Mayo Clinic's COVID-19 Activity Rehabilitation Program and reports on the characteristics of its first 100 patients.

Long Covid Is Not Rare. It's a Health Crisis.
Fiona Lowenstein and Hannah Davis, The New York Times
March 17, 2021

A year after infection, two patient-advocate co-authors argue long COVID is a mass-disabling event still largely ignored by policymakers.

An early, widely cited report follows a long-hauler's job loss and SSDI application, laying out the three basic legal requirements for eligibility.

We Need to Talk About What Coronavirus Recoveries Look Like
Fiona Lowenstein, The New York Times
April 13, 2020

Weeks after hospitalization, Fiona Lowenstein still couldn't answer whether she was "better" — an essay that helped spark the Body Politic support group.