FOI reference: FOI-2026-3430
You asked
I would like monthly data on number of people currently economically inactive, and the subset of this who have long COVID from 2018 up to present date.
I would also like monthly data for the estimated number (or proportion) of people in the UK with long COVID for the same time period.
I would also like to know why this data is no longer published.
If this data is no longer recorded I would also like to know why that is, and where I might be able to find it.
We said
Thank you for your request.
Our COVID-19 Infection Survey previously collected data on self-reported Long Covid and employment status, from which it was also possible to approximate economic inactivity status.
Monthly estimates of the rate of economic inactivity by self-reported Long Covid status from February 2021 to July 2022 are available on our website.
Monthly estimates of the prevalence of self-reported Long Covid from March 2021 to March 2023 are also available on our website.
The COVID-19 Infection Survey was discontinued in March 2023, as ONS stopped receiving funding from central government with which to run the survey.
Please see our latest publication of Economic inactivity by reason. This provides the number of people who are economically inactive due to long term illness. If you are interested in a further breakdown of this information, please contact socialsurveys@ons.gov.uk to request a bespoke dataset. Such services are subject to legal frameworks, resources and agreement of costs, in line with our charging policy.