The government has been accused of failing to take action to ensure nurses and doctors with long Covid have access to vital financial support for the last two years.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and British Medical Association (BMA) have claimed that ministers have not responded to recommendations of the government’s scientific advisory body on the issue since its report in November 2022.
It had been recommended by the UK Government’s Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) that Covid complications be recognised as having been acquired at work for health and social care workers – giving these staff more routes to Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefits.
Currently these benefits cover more than 70 diseases, including asthma, emphysema and deafness, but Covid is not yet listed.
Two years on, nurses and doctors are ‘still being denied access’ to this much-needed financial support, unions have claimed.
In a joint letter, the RCN and BMA have written to the Department for Work and Pensions describing the situation as a ‘deep betrayal’ that ‘must be rectified’.
Thousands of health and care staff contracted long Covid during the pandemic, leading to complications that have left many unable to continue working.
Data from the RCN shows that since January 2022 it has received almost 2,200 calls from members seeking help with long Covid.
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The college said these figures are ‘likely the tip of the iceberg with many more suffering in silence’.
Many nursing staff with the condition report ‘severe hardship, including having to draw from their pensions to meet living costs’, the RCN added.
In the letter, RCN general secretary and chief executive Professor Nicola Ranger and BMA chair Professor Phil Banfield, said: ‘Healthcare workers who contracted long Covid are facing monumental health struggles, with many forced out of their jobs and into early retirement.
‘This has been devastating, not only to their professional pride but also to their personal finances.’
They added: ‘After years of dedicated service, they must jump through hoops to access benefits, spending retirement funds that should have been saved for later in life.
‘For healthcare workers to be treated this way, considering their key role during the pandemic, amounts to a deep betrayal – and must be rectified.’
Chris, 47, was a newly-registered nurse during the pandemic and worked on a gastroenterology ward in England, before he caught the disease just six weeks into his new job.
He had what he described as a ‘dramatic relapse’ from Covid in September 2021 and has not worked since.
‘Long Covid has left me with heart issues, as well as problems with my kidneys. I also now have liver disease,’ he said.
‘I have gone from being a new nurse, to relying on my pension, which comes out at around £500 each month. Without some benefits and my wife continuing to work, I wouldn’t survive.’
He added: ‘I feel totally broken. It’s not fair that nursing staff put themselves at great risk during the pandemic and have now been hung out to dry. Ministers have to do something.’
Jacqueline, 56, was an infection prevention nurse working in an acute NHS trust during the pandemic and contracted Covid at work. This later led to serious health complications and forced her out of nursing after more than 35 years in the profession.
‘I had no intention of retiring from my role but am now left with significant lost earnings all thanks to a disease I caught during the course of my work,’ she said.
‘Like many thousands of other NHS staff, I find myself struggling, virtually having to beg for financial support. It’s disgraceful.
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‘The government were quick to call on NHS staff during the Covid crisis, it should exercise that same urgency and duty to look after those whose lives have been devastated by this disease.’
Alongside a letter to the government, the RCN has also written to the chair of the Work and Pensions Committee asking it to question the government on why it has not acted upon the IIAC recommendations.
In its report two years ago, the IIAC recommended that certain complications following Covid-19 infection be recognised as an occupational disease for health and social care workers.
It had concluded that for those working in health and care services ‘there is a significantly increased risk of infection, subsequent illness, and death’, and it said there was ‘sufficient evidence’ for Covid complications to come under the Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit for these staff.
The RCN and BMA letter to the department added: ‘The government’s prolonged delay in responding to these recommendations is increasingly difficult to justify, making immediate action essential.
‘In fact, in the two years IIAC published its command paper the understanding of these disabling conditions has only increased.’
They said: ‘This issue remains an urgent priority for the many nursing staff and doctors suffering from long Covid, many of whom have had their work and home lives severely curtailed.
‘While much of this delay predates the current government, it is now firmly within your power – and responsibility – to address this long-standing gap.’
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.
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‘The Department for Work and Pensions 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.’
The RCN and BMA made a similar appeal on the issue last year.
Earlier this month the UK Covid Inquiry into the government’s handling of the pandemic heard how nurses who contracted long Covid and subsequently left their jobs were let down and made to feel ‘disposable’ by NHS management.
