Long COVID is costing Texans thousands of dollars

Long COVID is costing Texans thousands of dollars more than the rest of the country, according to new data from health care company Nomi Health.

The big picture: Long COVID symptoms can vary and include brain fog, fatigue, organ damage, chest and joint pains, loss of senses of smell and taste, cough, headache, and gastrointestinal and cardiac issues.

• Researchers are still trying to understand why some people develop multiple chronic symptoms after what often starts as a mild coronavirus infection.
• The long-term symptoms cost employers and insured Americans thousands.

By the numbers: Texans with long COVID pay roughly $5,000 more on average than other Americans in the first six months after their diagnosis, Nomi Health found.

• Insured Texans saw a 240% increase in medical spending each month following an initial COVID diagnosis, or a predicted cost of $14,500 within the first six months of a diagnosis.

Of note: Nomi Health examined more than 20 million medical claims between January and June 2022, which also revealed skyrocketing employer expenses associated with long COVID.

• Long COVID nationally cost employers an average $600 more per member than the average diabetes episode in the first half of 2022, or an average of $2,654.67 per member.
• Employers also are faced with labor shortages because of the pandemic, and an August report from the Brookings Institute estimated that long COVID could be keeping as many as 4 million Americans out of the workforce.