Long COVID and the Right to Breathe

Abstract

“Long covid” is a post viral illness which includes up to 200 plus symptoms. This disabling condition can appear weeks or months after acquiring SARS-CoV-2 and can be ongoing or relapsing. New symptoms can arise at any time. (Raveendran, Jayadevan, & Sashidharan, 2021) The World Health Organization reports that long covid can continue or develop three months after the infection and last for two months or more. (World Health Organization, 2025) I will examine the illness using autotheory and a review of scholarly research to situate the disability of long covid within the realm of Critical Disability Studies. My literature review including academic and grey literature reveals that long covid, while often accepted as a disability qualifying for financial disability benefits in Canada, (Government of Canada, P. H. A. 2024, October 22). The illness remains poorly understood by many medical doctors especially when diagnosing and proposing treatment options. (Au, Capotescu, Eyal & Finestone, 2022) The above authors label this poor treatment “epistemic injustice”. (P. 3) My research will focus on Canada and to some extent the USA when examining treatment of people with the illness.