{"text":[[{"start":13.4,"text":"The impact of long-term illness suffered by people after Covid-19 infections is forecast to cost OECD countries a total of up to $135bn a year and will dog their economies for at least a decade, according to new research."}],[{"start":31.450000000000003,"text":"The projected hit to GDP from lower productivity, increased absences or employees quitting work altogether will dwarf extra health spending burdens stemming from the sickness, said the OECD study published on Wednesday."}],[{"start":48.09,"text":"The paper is a rare attempt to quantify the economic effects from so-called long Covid, which has a debilitating effect on sufferers but remains poorly understood scientifically and is patchily monitored for data collection."}],[{"start":63.370000000000005,"text":"“This work is important because it provides for the first time a comprehensive estimate of the economic burden of long Covid across EU and OECD countries,” said Guillaume Dedet, the publication’s co-ordinator and a senior health economist at the Paris-based organisation. "}],[{"start":84.32000000000001,"text":"“It shows that the costs of Covid-19 did not end with the acute phase of the pandemic: the virus continues, and will continue, to weigh on societies and economies for years to come.”"}],[{"start":98.66000000000001,"text":"The report forecast losses of between 0.1 and 0.2 per cent of GDP, amounting to a total loss of $135bn annually across all OECD countries, in scenarios where “low or moderate” residual coronavirus transmission led to ongoing new cases."}],[{"start":120.55000000000001,"text":"The economic fallout of long Covid is “substantial and mainly stems from the indirect costs from reduced productivity and participation in the workforce”, the report said. Its predictions are probably an underestimate of the true burden, it added."}],[{"start":136.20000000000002,"text":"The OECD argued the repercussions were more serious because they added to existing problems, including sluggish growth and productivity in ageing workforces."}],[{"start":147.43,"text":"Economists have previously struggled to quantify the impact of long Covid on employment and economic growth because few countries continued tracking people who were affected by the condition after the pandemic’s peak. "}],[{"start":162.06,"text":"The OECD drew on new survey evidence from the US, showing a lasting increase in health-related absence and exit from the labour market, as well as academic studies from the UK, Australia and elsewhere. "}],[{"start":175.9,"text":"It said all available data from high-income countries gave a consistent message: “persistent post-infection symptoms are not only a health challenge but also a structural brake on economic output”."}],[{"start":189.74,"text":"The OECD’s 38 member states include leading economies in Europe, the Americas and east Asia, although China is not a member."}],[{"start":201.02,"text":"While many countries have developed policies for long Covid recognition and response, important gaps often remain, the report said. These include in the provision of long-term care pathways for patients and the training and support of healthcare workers."}],[{"start":217.01000000000002,"text":"Government action on long Covid is often focused on the health sector, with limited co-ordination with employment, education and social protection policies, the paper said."}],[{"start":229.00000000000003,"text":"Long Covid — defined as a condition lasting at least three months after the initial viral infection — has been estimated to affect 18mn adults in the US. Sufferers report symptoms including shortness of breath, fatigue and cognitive decline — brain fog — lasting months or years."}],[{"start":249.74000000000004,"text":"Scientists remain unsure about exactly why some people experience long Covid and how the condition should be treated. Research suggests the viral infection triggers a heightened immune response and chronic inflammation in long Covid sufferers, indicating that damping these could be a way to tackle the condition."}],[{"start":282.31,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1775717819_5022.mp3"}