UT clinicians and local advocates urge Austin to expand long COVID awareness, data and clean-air protections
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Summary
A Dell Medical School physician and local advocates told the Mayor's Committee that long COVID affects thousands of Austinites, can be disabling, and recommended expanded public-health communications, clinician-community partnerships, and attention to clean indoor air and data collection.
Physicians and patient advocates briefed the Mayor's Committee for People with Disabilities on March 13 about long COVID’s prevalence, disabling effects and local policy steps the city can take to support affected residents.
Dr. Mike Bridal, medical director of the UT post-COVID clinic at Dell Medical School, summarized clinical uncertainties and findings, saying there is no single diagnostic test and that long COVID typically presents as a disabling cluster of symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog and post-exertional malaise. "We know that about 10 percent of people following COVID-19 infection will develop long COVID," Bridal said, adding that vaccination reduces that risk by about 50 percent and that CDC-derived estimates translate to roughly 42,000 Austinites with long COVID.
Bridal told the committee that many patients have seen multiple physicians before referral, that a large share experience impaired work capacity, and that the condition disproportionately affects women, Black and Hispanic people and those with limited access to care. He said federal guidance from HHS recognizes long COVID can be a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act when it is severe and functionally limiting.
Katie Drakert, founder of Clear the Air ATX and a long COVID patient advocate, called for improved and more accessible public-health communications, partnerships between Austin Public Health and clinical specialists, and incorporation of long COVID indicators into public-health data. She urged the city to expand materials, cite local resources (for instance the Long COVID Collective and UT post-COVID clinic), and consider passive protections such as improving indoor air with HEPA purifiers and ventilation.
The presenters recommended that Austin Public Health update and expand its long COVID resources (Drakert said existing materials had not been significantly updated since 2023 and omits many symptoms), collaborate with patient advocates and clinicians for messaging, and explore data partnerships (UT Austin, NIH RECOVER) to track long COVID locally.
Next steps: Committee members invited follow-up meetings and discussions with staff, and presenters offered to share materials and collaborate on public-health communication and data efforts.