Abstract
Though most recover from COVID quickly, countless others remain chronically ill. Five years after the start of the pandemic, Long COVID continues to harm the economy, forcing thousands from employment at a time when businesses are struggling to find workers. With over thirty million individuals in the United States having contracted Long COVID, the illness cannot be dismissed as merely malingering or psychosomatic in nature.
With no diagnostic test for identifying Long COVID, skepticism about the illness persists. Many are scared to acknowledge their affliction with the disease and fear being stigmatized. Those who suffer silently struggle to perform their job or leave employment altogether, thereby denying the economy of good workers. The workplace implications of this illness must no longer be ignored, and a new approach to addressing Long COVID is needed.
This Article provides a framework to help these workers, proposing the adoption of “The Long COVID Doctrine.” Through education, accommodation, leave coverage, access to benefits, and a renewed focus on mental health, this framework offers a comprehensive approach to this pervasive problem. This doctrine further provides a fresh look at how the Americans with Disabilities Act should apply to workers suffering from this condition. This multi-faceted approach can help avert the devasting effects this illness has had on the economy and restore the rights of these struggling employees.
Recommended Citation
Joseph A. Seiner, Long COVID, Silent Suffering, and Work, 83 Wash. & Lee L. Rev. 265 (2026).Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.wlu.edu/wlulr/vol83/iss1/7
Included in
Disability Law Commons, Health Law and Policy Commons, Labor and Employment Law Commons, Legislation Commons