Long COVID can be debilitating
“PCC affects the ability to work and perform daily tasks, creating considerable consequences for individuals and communities,” Nemer said. “The economic burden of PCC and the implications of the labour market in Canada could be profound.”Dr. Mona Nemer, Canada's chief science adviser . That amounts to billions of dollars in lost earnings. “The annual cost of those lost wages alone is around US$170 billion a year ,” the World Economic Forum said.Article content
For now, data on Canadian labour market impacts is scarce. But a 2022 survey of 1,050 COVID-19 “long-haulers” by VineX, an organization that studies how viruses affect the brain, suggests the consequences could be severe. Eighty per cent of poll respondents said their symptoms had a “negative or very negative” impact on their brain function, and more than 70 per cent said they had to take a leave from work as a result. Some were forced to completely exit the workforce.