Long Covid: nurses still being denied vital financial support

In a letter sent last week to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), unions representing nurses and doctors have criticised the government's failure to recognise Covid-19 as an occupational disease.

“This government has the opportunity to act decisively where past administrations have failed"

Letter to the government

They have demanded immediate action from ministers to financially support those who are unable to work after developing long Covid.

It comes as long Covid has left many healthcare staff, including nurses, unable to work, leading to a loss in earnings and financial instability.

New data obtained by the RCN showed that its member advice line had received thousands of calls since January 2022 from nursing staff seeking help with long Covid.

Some were even having to draw money from their pensions to meet living costs, the RCN warned.

The college argued that these figures were likely the “tip of the iceberg” with many more suffering in silence.

In November 2022, the government’s Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) recommended that certain Covid-19 complications should make health and social care workers eligible for industrial injuries and disablement benefits (IIDB) as it could be assumed they were acquired through work.

However, Covid-19 is yet to be added to the more than 70 diseases, including asthma, emphysema and deafness, covered by IIDB.

The RCN warned that Covid-19 not being listed was making it challenging for healthcare staff to secure financial support.

In a letter sent last week to the secretary of state for DWP, Liz Kendall, unions representing nurses and doctors described the government’s failure to implement the recommendations as a “betrayal”.

The letter, signed by the RCN and the British Medical Association (BMA), said: “The government’s prolonged delay in responding to these recommendations is increasingly difficult to justify, making immediate action essential.”

It noted that 50 other countries across the world had moved to recognise Covid-19 as an occupational disease and had put systems in place to support affected workers, including offering them compensation and financial support.

The letter added: “This government has the opportunity to act decisively where past administrations have failed, demonstrating to health and care workers that their sacrifices have not been forgotten.

“Implementing the IIAC’s recommendations should merely be the first step.

“We urge you to prioritise this issue, provide a timeline for action, and outline the measures the DWP will take to ensure nursing staff, doctors and other frontline workers receive the support they need.”

In response, a government spokesperson said: “We’re currently carrying out a detailed assessment of the report’s recommendations and will provide a formal response once this work is complete.

“DWP offers financial support through universal credit and new style employment and support allowance for people with a health condition that limits their ability to work.”

Separately, a group of almost 300 healthcare workers, who allege that they developed long Covid as a result of their employers’ negligence, are hoping to bring legal action against a number of English NHS trusts and Welsh health boards.

The workers, which include nurses, claim that their employers failed to provide them with adequate personal protective equipment to protect them from Covid-19 infection during the pandemic and as a result they continue to suffer serious health issues and are unable to return to work.

Lawyers for the group last month attended the Royal Courts of Justice in London to argue for the judge to set trial dates without further delay.