Graphic by Natasha Nagarajan ‘26.
By Silas Gemma ’26
Staff Writer
President Joe Biden’s “60 Minutes” interview remarks on Sept. 18, 2022, during which he declared that “the pandemic is over,” serve as a painful confirmation that the institutions meant to protect us — namely the government — have neglected the American public in the face of a more subliminal, yet similarly-grave ailment: long COVID. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that Long COVID is a term used to refer to a variety of conditions that develop after a COVID-19 infection.
Per the CDC, Long COVID conditions cannot be identified until at least four weeks after infection. Symptoms include brain fog, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, shortness of breath, stomach pain, joint and muscle pain, heart palpitations and headaches among other symptoms. According to a TIME article, Long COVID can persist from a few weeks or months for some patients, but can extend years for others. People who suffer from these chronic post-COVID conditions were dubbed “COVID long-haulers” in TIME.
As the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in the United States less than three years ago, it is impossible to truly tell how debilitating Long COVID will be over the coming decades. The alarming warnings about COVID-19 broadcast at the forefront of the pandemic have diminished in 2022.
The pleas for help from those experiencing post-COVID conditions are going largely unanswered as our leaders desert the fight against the pandemic, seemingly content to live with COVID-19 while attempting to achieve a sense of normalcy. The recent statements from President Biden confirm a government mentality of insouciance about the pandemic.
The relaxing of COVID-19 policies at educational institutions such as Mount Holyoke College also exemplify the growing indifference to the threat of COVID-19 on comparatively smaller scales. This indifference has proved deadly and will have long-term economic and health implications that many are not willing to grapple with.
In the nascent stages of the pandemic, health care officials as well as the general public were primarily concerned with the short-term effects of COVID-19, which included symptoms experienced during the infectious period as well as the possibilities of hospitalization and death during this window. Yet it has become apparent that the strain on health care systems across the globe will continue as researchers discover alarming chronic health conditions stemming from prior COVID-19 infections. As stated in a TIME article from Sept. 22, 2022, these health conditions include organ failure, which may lead to a litany of health risks down the line. TIME reports that scientists have attributed long COVID to an increase in the risk of developing dementia or cardiovascular conditions. The hodgepodge of potential symptoms and the varying ways they may manifest have posed a barrier for properly diagnosing the issue and yielding treatments.
The uncertainty also trickles into the etiology of this condition. A TIME article suggests that long COVID may be attributed to segments of the SARS-CoV-2 virus still in the body, the resurgence of previously-dormant viruses and even blood clots. The CDC notes that there are many parallels between long COVID and other chronic conditions, likely stemming from a post-infection immune reaction, such as myalgic encephalomyelitis, or chronic-fatigue syndrome.
Aside from the personal health costs that come with long COVID, the aggregate monetary costs are staggering. The Brookings Institution estimates $170 billion of wages annually has been lost in the United States as a result of long COVID unemployment, but its report aptly points out that this number does not take into account the decreases in productivity among sufferers who are currently working or the costs for the health care system.
The Brookings Institution additionally cites a June 2022 survey by the Census Bureau that suggests that out of approximately 16 million Americans of working age who have long COVID, two to four million are not currently working as a direct result of their condition. The wide latitude granted to these statistics confirms the overall uncertainty that surrounds this condition, supporting the idea that millions of people could be suffering in silence or conflating their symptoms with other conditions.
Although government officials are aware of the crisis, they continue to skirt around it in an attempt to divert the public’s attention from their negligence. The measures they have enacted to combat long COVID are mostly performative and have been insufficient to address the situation.
As TIME reported, in 2020, Congress allocated more than $1 billion to the National Institutes of Health for long COVID studies. Although it may seem like a significant contribution, it has not been adequate to change how the NIH coordinates and runs its studies. There have been a variety of proposals and studies surrounding long COVID, both indicators that there are scientists who are actively working to find solutions, but the lack of a concerted effort on a broader scale has disillusioned those experiencing post-COVID conditions, who are anxious for a reprieve.
This desperation and sense of desertion by both the government and health care leaders is only compounded when considering the rescission of preventative measures that were put in place at the beginning of the pandemic. A TIME article reports that the CDC no longer recommends mask mandates, social distancing or asymptomatic testing for most people. This backstepping is not only seen with the decisions of the CDC, but also with various state and local institutions such as schools and universities, including Mount Holyoke’s own halt of twice-weekly asymptomatic testing.
The idea that long COVID is a rarity or is only seen in groups such as the unvaccinated, immunocompromised or elderly is a dangerous misconception. Educational institutions such as Mount Holyoke need to be informed about the effects that post-COVID conditions may have on the student body. Due to the neurobiological and overall physical changes that can come with long COVID, schools need to be more prepared to provide for their students beyond the infectious period.
The significant impediments that long COVID brings to the learning process necessitates concrete and persistent action. The uncertainty or newness of symptoms makes it more difficult for students to specify what they are experiencing, but more information needs to be dispersed in order to build a network of aid and keep students informed.
The Los Angeles Times reported that each COVID-19 re-infection also compounds the risk for the development of long-COVID or could exacerbate or trigger long COVID symptoms. The common defeatist sentiment that COVID-19 is just going to continue to run its course through the population and that there is nothing else that can be done is hazardous.
The menace of long COVID emphasizes that higher-education institutions, such as Mount Holyoke, need to be cognizant of the situation and continue implementing preventative measures to keep their students safe. Two and a half years into the pandemic, Mount Holyoke students are aware of the devastating impacts that COVID-19 shutdowns can have on an educational, psychological and social level. The call for more stringent COVID-19 measures stems from a desire to keep the campus open and able to provide students with a rich college experience.
Looking back at her high school experience with COVID-19 restrictions, Rida Naveed ’26 is looking forward to an in-person college experience, especially as a STEM major, as she recounts difficulties with completing labs virtually in high school. “I think the concept of weekly testing, or at least biweekly testing, is something that should be taken into consideration by the [College] administration,” Naveed said, “because [COVID-19] does impact a lot of people in the MHC community.”
Naveed also stressed the importance of masking, especially when in large gatherings. The lack of testing is also creating an environment of uncertainty. “I’d be much more comfortable if we lifted the mask mandate if we were testing because we don’t know if we can take masks off or not,” Molly Brown ’25 said, pointing out that a COVID-19-positive person may not develop symptoms immediately.
She adds that “finding a balance between liberties and precautions” is important, acknowledging that COVID-19 is not something that is going to disappear.
The maintenance or reinstatement of college COVID-19 policies will not only reduce the short-term risks of having the virus, but also the possibly devastating long-term impacts that COVID-19 can have. As much of the world moves on, it is becoming more and more clear that the time is now to amplify our voices, educate others, build community and collaborate to find solutions to this suppressed pandemic.