Biden steps up federal efforts to address long COVID

Enlarge / A long-COVID patient in German takes a pulmonary function test at Hufeland Clinic's Center for Pneumology. (credit: Getty | picture alliance)

President Joe Biden on Tuesday issued a memorandum directing the secretary of Health and Human Services to coordinate and speed efforts to understand and treat long COVID, which is estimated to affect up to 23 million Americans.

In a White House press briefing Tuesday, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said the administration's plan has three main goals: to improve care and support for long-COVID patients, enhance education and outreach on long-COVID and disability services, and step up research on causes and evidence-based treatments.

"Long COVID is real," Becerra said, "and there's still so much we don't know about it. Millions of Americans may be struggling with lingering health effects, ranging from things that are easier to notice-like trouble breathing or irregular heartbeat-to less apparent, but potentially serious conditions related to the brain or mental health."

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