This study investigates the link between long-term COVID-19 symptoms and financial hardship. Analyzing a large national survey from 2022-2024, it tracks how difficulty paying for usual household expenses varied among U.S. adults with different COVID-19 experiences. The findings suggest that 1.5% of U.S. adults, roughly 3.9 million people, who suffer from severe activity limitations due to long COVID face the highest financial burden, with over 7 in 10 experiencing persistent financial hardship. This group was nearly twice as likely to face financial hardship as those who were never infected. These extreme disparities persisted long after pandemic relief programs ended. These findings suggest that severe long COVID creates a cycle of health and financial crisis, underscoring the critical need for policy solutions like improved disability benefits and integrated financial support services to protect these vulnerable individuals and households.

Accepted Oral Presentation