As the U.S. again struggles with a surge of COVID-19 cases, it’s important to remember that many individuals continue to grapple with symptoms of the disease long after their first positive COVID test.

There is still much that we don’t know about so-called “long COVID” or “post-COVID-19 syndrome.” Like COVID-19 itself, symptoms vary wildly, from shortness of breath and fatigue, to permanent kidney and heart damage.

What sets long haulers apart is that while most people recover from COVID-19 in a few days or a few months, long haulers continue to experience symptoms for weeks, or even months after receiving a negative test result for the novel coronavirus.

It’s unclear exactly how many people infected with COVID become long haulers, but the current estimate is that somewhere between 10 and 30 percent of all of those who catch the virus are affected.

I myself contracted COVID-19 last October. While I had a milder case than many, it was still about two months from the time I caught the virus until I fully recovered from symptoms of shortness of breath and memory fog.

Unfortunately, others are not as lucky. Many long haulers are even finding that it is now impossible for them to return to the jobs they had prior to catching the virus.

President Biden recognized this fact earlier this summer at a press conference marking the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, noting that in some cases long haul COVID can rise to the level of a disability that requires workplace accommodations.

However, the Social Security Administration, which millions of Americans rely on for income replacement when they can no longer work, has remained virtually silent on the subject of long haul COVID.

Social Security has a long-standing rule that in order to be eligible for disability benefits, a claimant must have an impairment that lasts-or is expected to last-12 consecutive months, which has made it difficult for many long haulers applying for disability.

We are now seeing COVID long haulers who meet this requirement, and in December, the agency issued an emergency memorandum stating that it will flag disability applications that allege disability due to long COVID, but nothing else has come out about how these claims will be reviewed.

We don’t know what medical documentation or specific symptoms related to long haul COVID are required to prove someone is disabled under Social Security’s rules. Instead, the agency is attempting to shoehorn the condition into rules governing other medical impairments, leaving many long haulers unable to work with no source of income.

This marks yet another failure of the federal government’s response to the pandemic. COVID-19 is a novel disease with novel long-term symptoms, and Social Security must institute new rules immediately to better serve those who can no longer work due to long COVID symptoms.

W. Christopher Freiberg is an attorney with the law firm of Midwest Disability, which represents Social Security disability claimants around the country. He can be reached at 763-447-4103 or cfreiberg@midwestdisability.com.

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