Letter to a Journalist about Long Covid

Nov 10, 2024

Dear (if I may) X,

On Thursday, January 18th of this year, the United States Senate held a bipartisan hearing titled “Addressing Long COVID: Advancing Research and Improving Patient Care.”[1] For many of us in the small but active “Covid Cautious Community” (if it has a name), this event felt like a watershed moment. “Finally,” we thought, “people will understand what is happening and we will get the public health response we need.” Instead, we face more gaslighting, accusations of misinformation, and worse. I will do my best, in this short letter, to include as many sources as possible to convince you that Covid-19/SARS-2, remains a serious public health threat, though others have already done an excellent job reporting this that I could not surpass.[2] I hope to convey to you, at the minimum, that a major issue is being overlooked in politics, journalism, and public health, and that we should to counteract simplistic narratives about health before the new administration begins its mandate. I write this letter because, unfortunately, many who otherwise would take my place are suffering from Covid-19’s effects and cannot function in order to carry out this work. I include around sixty sources and have done my best to keep this letter under 2,000 words for brevity. If I contact you, X, it is because I have come to trust you through your reporting, interviews, and fine work that exudes a sense of honesty and integrity in journalism that is increasingly difficult to find.

Since we dropped public health measures, our efforts to return to normal have left much to be desired as we have played a Faustian bargain with our collective well-being. In Fall of 2021, some of us (including the CDC) noted that, in Massachusetts, a large number of “breakthrough infections” had taken place among a fully vaccinated group of people.[3] The CDC, to their credit, recommended masking in spaces with high probability of contagion, to stop the spread. Since we were promised, by President Biden himself, that once we were vaccinated we would be “fully protected,” we wondered what the government’s response would be and what this meant for our efforts.[4] While Dr. Anthony Fauci initially dismissed this event[5] back then, he later regretted it.[6] When, in early 2022, we witnessed how the CDC changed map color guidelines to downplay risk, we started to understand that approval ratings were more important to this administration than public health.[7] After this, President Joe Biden then announced that the pandemic was “over” without citing much convincing evidence. To those of us who witnessed how Covid-19 kept mutating, faster than vaccines could keep up,[8] we worried about what this meant.

The conversation, in the public eye around the world, has mostly been centered around “pro” or “anti” vaccine stances. Along these lines, you were either “with” “the science” (which was arbitrarily abandoned by public health authorities to potentially protect, say, Delta Airlines),[9] or against it. Because vaccines—although they provided necessary protection—failed to provide the promised immunity, the virus has kept mutating and causing multiple waves of illness. Likewise, the attacks on masking and any mention of Covid, from the Right or the Left, made important discussions about preventative measures nearly impossible. Perhaps worst of all was the White House’s confusing messaging on masks, which originally claimed they did not work in order to avoid panic buying when hospitals needed PPE.[10] This led to the unfortunate drop in trust in public health messaging thereafter. Unfortunately, given that Covid-19 causes harm to the body, the Left’s silence has given the Right ample leeway to shape the narrative around vaccines as the cause of new health issues.[11]

Our public health has especially failed not just the most vulnerable, but those of us who assume we are not, until it’s too late; Covid-19, unfortunately, makes us vulnerable after multiple infections. In 2021, approximately 3% of Americans were immunocompromised,[12] meaning that when we dropped all public health requirements they were left to fend for themselves by either permanently staying at home or risking their lives to do basic daily tasks. With the number now estimated at 6.6%,[13] the possibility that Covid itself affects the immune system[14] may cause lymphocytopenia,[15] the risks of chronic illness rising in the United States, and children prone to a variety of health issues we are just beginning to understand,[16] action is urgent. While we measured the pandemic through death rates, we ignored the long-term consequences; each new infection with the virus can result in a number of symptoms or increased risk of health,[17] ranging from brain fog and cognitive issues,[18] heart disease,[19] blood clots,[20] to more extreme cases similar to ME/CFS, where people can barely get out of bed for months or longer. At least 7% of all U.S. adults, or roughly 18 million people, have reported to have Long Covid or PASC as of this year.[21] With recurrent waves of illness, the problem is far from over.[22] In fact, it seems Covid may be reactivating dormant viruses,[23] such as shingles,[24] Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) which causes mononucleosis,[25] and others. A recent Canadian study (confirming an earlier one by the Canadian government[26]) in Quebec found that, after three infections, the risk of Long Covid went up to 37%.[27] While the owner of the L.A. Times—Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong—has recently caught the public eye due to his political decisions about the newspaper,[28] less publicized were his warnings about the possible crisis of viral reservoirs after Covid infections and the foundation he created to research Covid-19.[29] Drs. like Amy Proal, of PolyBio,[30] have been among the leading researchers on Long Covid, under this funding, but it is not enough.[31]

Furthermore, the evidence for Covid-19’s long-term effects on health has become somewhat overwhelming, despite general media and public silence. Patients report worsened vascular, cognitive health and the virus can affect virtually any organ system in the body, regardless of age.[32] Hank Green of the VlogBrothers recently made an excellent video describing how Covid-19 is likely increasing chances of cancer.[33] A recent study found that approximately a quarter of those infected with Covid-19 still had viral reservoirs in their body up to 14 months after infection, potentially leading to chronic inflammation or worse.[34] Reports have not been entirely absent in the media and institutions, as, for example, the Brookings Institute warned in the Fall of 2022 that Long Covid could have contributed to the labor shortages the country faced.[35] In the broader economic front, a Harvard professor estimated that the costs of Long Covid could be in the trillions.[36] To his credit, Jerome Powell also then acknowledged that Long Covid could be causing some of the labor shortages.[37] The head of the WHO, Dr. Tedros had warned that “1 in 10” Covid infections resulted in long-term health issues.[38] In China, a recent study this month shows that 30% of adults studied had Long Covid symptoms after their infections.[39] Dr. Ziyad Al-Aly has been warning of the dangers of repeat infections for years now, given his study of veterans.[40] Dr. Danny Altman of Imperial College London estimated last year that approximately 400 million people worldwide could be suffering from Long Covid.[41] Given that Long Covid is affecting children,[42] we as adults bear the responsibility of acting on behalf of those who are powerless.

Likewise, a lot of prominent voices have spoken about the risks of this virus, from politicians to journalists to doctors and more. With Bernie Sanders having joined the Biden administration, the Sanders Left was leaderless and rudderless, with the exception of groups like The Peoples’ CDC[43] and the Senator himself, on a few occasions.[44] Chris Cuomo himself has been struggling with Long Covid and reporting on it, and it seems like only those with nothing left to lose, like Dr. Deborah Birx, are willing to speak for now.[45] After leaving the White House, former Surgeon General Jerome Adams has likewise been an advocate, himself, of wearing masks in crowded spaces.[46] Even Dr. Anthony Fauci, at a Georgetown talk this year, looked back on many mistakes around this pandemic, including the high numbers of asymptomatic cases.[47] A host of celebrities from shows such as Orange is the New Black have also shared their stories with new onset chronic illness from Covid.[48] Online science influencer, too, like Dianna Cowern (“Physics Girl”) have shared even more harrowing pain from Covid, leaving them bedbound for approximately two years.[49] There is hope, as seen in this clean air initiative for schools in Connecticut,[50] but the scale of the problem requires coordinated action. Education for medical professionals is coming, but at a slow pace,[51] while many patients find their doctors do not believe their symptoms or refuse to wear masks for them. Luckily, N95 masks are excellent at protecting us not just from Covid but hopefully from the incoming H5N1 flu,[52] but our individual actions are not enough.[53]

Those of us who have stayed up-to-date on the latest research have carried a heavy burden, especially in cases where we live with a new health issue and find no solutions. Our biggest sin, it seems, was to keep following the science as everyone else decided to move on. We have been accused of being a “cult” by some, but I have never heard of a cult whose members, every day, seek ways to get out of it by finding evidence that its claims are false. Unfortunately for everyone, we are no such organization; we promise nothing, gain nothing, and seek nothing other than public health in the face of overwhelming evidence that Covid-19 not only remains a deadly virus, but, perhaps worse, seems to paint a scary future where we all end up with comorbidities, disabilities, and higher health risks. I would therefore like to suggest X as a guest to speak about this ongoing issue, since he has led much of the effort in educating the public about the ongoing health crisis.

I also want to say “thank you” to you, since, of basically all the media I consume, you are the only person that, in my mind, best fits the category of “journalist” and I regularly enjoy your columns and interviews…….Covid may not have cost the Democrats this election, it certainly cost them a few voters, and perhaps hundreds of thousands who could not vote this time around.[54] It's because of my respect for your craft that I hope this email may find you well and with a receptive ear.

aufhayyybung’s Substack

Letter to a Journalist about Long Covid