A new center for post-COVID treatment and research is centered on East Harlem and the South Bronx, two of New York City’s hardest-hit districts during the pandemic.
According to a New York State Comptroller report, Mount Sinai opened the new Mount Sinai-Internal Medicine Associates center on its Upper East Side campus to conduct research on what is commonly referred to as “long COVID” and to offer targeted care for residents of East Harlem and South Bronx, two neighborhoods with the highest rates of hospitalization and mortality.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality provided a $5 million government grant to support the facility, Mount Sinai-Internal Medicine Associates, located at 17 E. 102nd St., according to a statement. The award also funds outreach programs designed to increase South Bronx and Harlem residents’ knowledge of their alternatives for treatment and their ability to obtain it.
COVID rates increased again in New York City this summer, as studies from the National Institutes of Health show that Black and Latino New Yorkers have greater incidence of COVID, as well as more symptoms and post-infection health issues, but are less likely to be diagnosed with long-term COVID.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention define long COVID as a collection of symptoms that last following a COVID infection and vary across individuals. According to the CDC, women and Hispanic and Latino individuals who experience “health inequities” due to disability, economic, geographic, and other social factors are the most at-risk populations in the country. The CDC has documented over 200 long COVID symptoms, with weariness, cognitive fog, and severe flu-like symptoms being the most prevalent ones. Long-term COVID patients often get symptom relief after three months, although others may experience improvement for days or even years, according to authorities.
