He will soon launch clinical trials to investigate possible remedies for the disease that affects millions of people.
The Biden administration is launching an initiative for the long COVID and, for the first time, conducting clinical trials to investigate potential remedies for the disease.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Monday the creation of the Office of Research and Practice on Long COVID. It will examine the illness that leaves some people with chronic exhaustion, pain, mental confusion, and more for months or years after contracting COVID-19.
The decomponent also announced that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will soon launch two clinical trials to examine the long-term COVID remedy as a component of a $1. 15 billion study program on the disease. The RECOVER initiative, first established in 2021, has one of the largest research teams of long-term COVID patients in the world with more than 24,000 participants to date, according to the administration.
“As our country continues to make progress in the fight against COVID-19, it is very important that we address the effects of prolonged COVID-19 and provide resources to those who need them,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. declaration. ” Last year, President Biden asked HHS to coordinate the response to Long COVID. The formal status quo of the Long COVID Coordination Office and the launch of the RECOVER clinical trials reinforce this factor as an ongoing priority.
The disease is estimated to have disrupted the lives of up to 23 million people in the U. S. The U. S. has been seen in the U. S. since the pandemic began, but the disease remains unstudied and long-term COVID patients have few options for remedy; Doctors who know their status have waiting lists of several months, while other doctors dismiss patients’ concerns.
Patients were also frustrated by the administration’s resolution to end the COVID-19 emergency earlier this year, which represented a stab at patients who had already felt ignored and rejected for years. Some advocates praised the RECOVER initiative, but said it needed to be more serious about addressing patients’ concerns.
Biden’s management has been touting its whole-of-government technique to combat prolonged COVID for more than a year, and management called for more investment for the disease in its 2024 budget request.
“The Office of COVID Research and Long Practice will make efforts across the U. S. government. “We are working to improve the lives of those who continue to suffer the long-term effects of the worst public health crisis in a century,” said Deputy Secretary of Health Rachel Levin. “Combining the resources and expertise of federal, state and local partners, patients, providers, researchers and the corporate sector to answer the most pressing calls to action from the American people. “
In May, the RECOVER initiative published a first-of-its-kind study defining the main symptoms of long COVID. The study found 12 symptoms that could diagnose a patient, the main symptoms being loss of smell and taste, and worsening of symptoms after physical or intellectual activity, chronic cough and brain fog.
Although the administration has ended the COVID-19 emergency, the virus is still present in the United States, with some indications that the disease has increased within weeks.
Sharon Zhang is news editor at Truthout and covers politics, climate and labor. Prior to joining Truthout, Sharon had written for Pacific Standard, The New Republic and more. She holds a master’s degree in environmental studies. It can be found on Twitter: @zhang_sharon.
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