Long Covid will cost the Australian economy around $9.6 billion in 2022

Australian workers suffering from long-term COVID-19 illnesses will cost the economy an average of about $9.6 billion in 2022, a research firm has said. New Research.

Researchers led by the University of Melbourne, the Australian National University (ANU) and the University of New South Wales, Sydney, calculated the hours of working time lost among Australian adults who were unable to work or had to work reduced hours in 2022 because of ongoing COVID-19 symptoms for up to 12 months after initial diagnosis.

The researchers estimated that up to 1.3 million Australians would have long COVID-19 at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in September 2022. Of these, around 55,000 were children (aged four and under), who are not eligible for vaccination in Australia.

Australian National University's Professor Quentin Grafton said the health and economic burden of long COVID-19 in Australia would be high, particularly for working adults.

“Workers who continue to have COVID-19 symptoms months after their initial diagnosis lost an average of around 100 million working hours in 2022. This equates to an average loss of eight hours per year per employed person, including both full-time and part-time employees,” Professor Grafton said.

“This estimates that the overall economy-wide losses will average around $9.6 billion in 2022, equivalent to a quarter of Australia's real gross domestic product growth for that year. This does not include losses such as healthy employees being unable to work because they are caring for patients with long-term COVID-19.”

Professor Tom Compass, from the University of Melbourne, said the age group in Australian workers that has the greatest impact on the economy is 30 to 49 years old.

“Workers in this age group contributed to a loss of 52 million working hours, or more than 50% of the total labour force and productivity lost in 2022,” Professor Kompas said.

The researchers looked at the number of COVID-19 cases in Australia from January 2022 to December 2023.

use data The research team developed a mathematical model to calculate the number of people who have continued to have COVID-19 symptoms for three to 12 months and who have not recovered from the disease (people with COVID-19 symptoms lasting more than 12 months) in a sample of 5,185 working Australian adults aged 18 years or older.

The researchers say Australian governments and policymakers should place more emphasis on long COVID-19 as a public health priority.

“The primary focus of COVID-19 health policy has been preventing hospitalization and death from acute COVID-19, with less attention being paid to long COVID,” said Dr Valentina Costantino from the University of New South Wales.

“At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in September 2022, between 310,000 and 1.3 million Australians will have long COVID-19. By December 2024, 12 months after initial infection, we estimate there will be between 173,000 and 873,000 people with long COVID-19. This does not take into account reinfection.”

“Wide spread of COVID-19 infection means that even small amounts of chronic COVID-related illness or disability will have an impact on the health of the working adult population, particularly,” said lead author Professor Raina McIntyre, also from the University of New South Wales.

“Coronary heart disease affects around three per cent of the population and is a leading cause of illness and death in Australia and the world. Long COVID-19 is likely to become one of the leading causes of disease burden.”

“It's time to consider long COVID in policy decisions. Currently, it's difficult for young, healthy people to access booster shots and antivirals. Expanding access will have a positive impact on long COVID because the greatest burden is falling on working-age adults.”

“Other strategies to reduce COVID-19 and therefore long-term COVID-19 should focus on addressing indoor air quality by improving ventilation.”

The researchers said the study also highlights the need to better support patients with long COVID-19 and help them manage their condition.

“Treating long COVID-19 requires strengthening the capacities of health systems and societal structures to support patients and manage the disease. This could improve quality of life and increase the ability of individuals to return to work,” Professor Kompas said.

“If long term Covid patients who are unable to work because of their symptoms were given at least financial support, such as access to disability pensions, this would ease the financial burden on them,” Prof McIntyre said.

This study Australian Medical Journal.