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There's a Medication That Could Help Prevent Long COVID-but Most Doctors Aren't Prescribing It Yet

By Emily Laurence Sardinha Parade - Health Stories
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For most people, getting COVID is a temporary inconvenience. No one wants to be sick in bed for a few days, but most people bounce back relatively quickly. But for some people, COVID symptoms aren't a short-term issue, and they continue to experience symptoms months and even years after getting the virus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6.9% of adults reported having Long COVID in 2022, a percentage that has likely gone up since the virus has now been around longer. Long COVID is when symptoms related to contracting the COVID virus last more than three months. These symptoms can include respiratory problems (like shortness of breath or coughing), cognitive issues (like brain fog or memory problems), fatigue, dizziness and loss of taste and smell, among other symptoms.

Related: Doctors Are Seeing a Bizarre New COVID Symptom Right Now

But according to a new scientific study, the antiviral medication Paxlovid could help with Long COVID symptoms if it's taken for a longer period of time. Despite this promising development, most doctors aren't prescribing it for Long COVID. Why not? We talked to an infectious disease expert to find out.

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The Medication That Could Help With Long COVID

If you've never heard of Paxlovid before, it's important to understand what the medication is and how it works before talking about it in the context of Long COVID. Dr. Eric Yager, PhD, an infectious disease expert and associate professor of microbiology at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, explains that Paxlovid is an antiviral medication used to treat mild to severe COVID infections in people who are at high risk of experiencing severe complications from the virus, including people 65 and older or who are immunocompromised.

Dr. Yager tells Parade that Paxlovid is a combination of two drugs. The first drug is nirmatrelvir, which blocks a key enzyme the virus needs to replicate. The second drug is ritonavir, which slows down the breakdown of nirmatrelvir (the first drug) so that it stays effective longer.

Related: 8 Sneaky Symptoms That You Might Not Realize Are Signs of Long COVID

"Paxlovid is a very effective drug against the virus and it's recommended for individuals who are likely to have severe outcomes. But the tricky part is that you have to know that you are infected with COVID and not another illness, like the flu or RSV, for it to work," he says.

On top of this, Dr. Yager adds that for Paxlovid to work, it must be prescribed within the first five days of being infected with the virus.

How Paxlovid Could Be Used To Treat Long COVID

Until recently, Paxlovid has only been used to treat acute COVID infections. But researchers at UC San Francisco found that it may help people experiencing Long COVID as well. Typically, Paxlovid is taken for five days. In the study, researchers had 13 people with Long COVID take it for 15 days. Some of the participants experienced a meaningful reduction in symptoms, but it didn't work for everyone. Some participants felt better for a while, but their symptoms eventually returned.

With this in mind, when asked if Paxlovid can help treat Long COVID, Dr. Yager's answer is…maybe. He says that while the research is encouraging, it's not strong enough to truly show that it can help, which is why extended doses of Paxlovid are not being prescribed for Long COVID yet.

Related: This Bizarre Symptom May Be a Sign of Long COVID, According to COVID Experts

Dr. Yager points out that what makes using Paxlovid to treat Long COVID especially challenging is that it must be taken within five days of contracting the virus, and most people don't realize they have Long COVID until weeks or months after that.

How To Decrease Your Risk of Long COVID

If you want to decrease your risk of getting Long COVID, Dr. Yager says the best action you can take is getting a yearly COVID vaccine. "There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to Long COVID, but what we do know is that being unvaccinated puts you at a higher risk of getting it," he tells Parade. "If you get vaccinated for COVID, your risk of getting Long COVID isn't zero, but it's definitely lower than if you don't get the COVID vaccine."

Dr. Yager explains that, similarly to the flu vaccine, the COVID vaccine is continuously updated to reflect the latest COVID mutations. This is why it's important to continue getting a COVID vaccine every year; if you haven't received it since the vaccines initially came out, your protection from the virus is low.

What should you do if you already have Long COVID? Dr. Yager says that, currently, treatment for Long COVID is focused on symptom management; there is no cure for Long COVID-at least not yet. That said, if symptoms from Long COVID (such as shortness of breath, brain fog or fatigue) are interfering with your daily life, you should talk to your doctor about the best way to manage these symptoms.

While it may be disheartening to hear that there is no cure for Long COVID yet, Dr. Yager says that the new research on taking Paxlovid for an extended period of time is promising. Just because the science for using it to treat Long COVID isn't quite there yet doesn't mean it won't ever be. An exciting breakthrough could be just around the corner.

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Related: What Vaccines Do You Need in March if You're Over 50? Doctors Explain

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This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 11:25 AM.

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