Copyright M Live Michigan
TRAVERSE CITY, MI – America’s first national healthcare center specializing in the treatment of long COVID is opening this week in Traverse City, The Ticker reports. It’s a team up with HealthBio, a Traverse City-based innovator in treating long COVID, and Celly Health, a national primary care provider, the report said. Bringing the two companies together will allow HealthBio’s novel long COVID treatment to be paired with Celly Health’s primary care across the country, giving patients easier access to the treatment plan. Dr. Bruce Patterson, former the director of clinical virology and co-director of the AIDS Research Center at Stanford University, leads HealthBio, the report said. For years, he has been experimenting with the use of existing medications to treat long COVID. His six- to 12-week regimen includes maraviroc, an FDA-approved prescription that treats HIV; and atorvastatin, FDA-approved for treating high cholesterol. The national center will be based at the Celly Health Medical Group offices in the Bayview Professional Centre in Traverse City, the report said. However, the program lends itself to telehealth, and Celly is already eyeing additional locations. The Centers for Disease Control defines long COVID as “a chronic condition that occurs after SARS-CoV-2 infection (which causes COVID-19) and is present for at least 3 months.” Long COVID affects an estimated 20 million Americans, according to Yale Medicine.
