To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to establish (a) dedicated care pathways, (b) specialist clinics and (c) home support for people with long covid.
Answered on
11 September 2024
Since 2020, the National Health Service in England has invested significantly in supporting people with long COVID. This includes setting up specialist post-COVID services nationwide for adults, and children and young people, as well as investing in ensuring general practice (GP) teams are equipped to support people affected by the condition.
As of 1 April 2024, there are over 90 adult post-COVID services across England, along with an additional 10 children and young people’s hubs. These services assess people with long COVID and direct them into care pathways which provide appropriate support and treatment. GPs will assess patients that have COVID-19 symptoms lasting longer than four weeks, and refer them into a long COVID service where appropriate. Referral should be via a single point of access, which is managed by clinician-led triage.
More widely, we are committed to moving to a Neighbourhood Health Service, with more care delivered in local communities, to spot problems earlier. This includes shifting resources to primary care and community services over time.
Having suffered from long COVID myself, improving services and outcomes for patients remains a priority.