People suffering the effects of COVID-19 weeks and months after being infected are having a wider impact on your life than you thought before.

In a CBS report, non-resident senior fellow Katie Bach from the Brookings Institution suggests that the equivalent of 1.6 million people are missing from the full-time workforce because of their “long-hauler” status after contracting the coronavirus. Many people suffer symptoms for at least four weeks, but some can have them for months.  Long COVID patients are associated with approximately 250 symptoms like severe headaches, brain fog, and heart palpitations, which are making people feel less comfortable going back into the workplace. Dr. Brad Wozney of Bellin Health Denmark says they have been directing patients to their primary care providers in hopes of finding solutions to their problems.

An estimated 19 million people are suffering from long-term symptoms of COVID-19. According to the USA Today Network-Wisconsin, only a handful of Wisconsin health systems offer services tailored to the long-haulers, setting up long waiting lists for those currently not enrolled but in need.