By Christopher Dreisbach at Brownstone dot org.

"If you define the problem correctly, you almost have the solution."

Steve Jobs

Definitions matter. In almost any context, problems left undefined inevitably remain problems left unsolved.

For this reason, healthcare professionals worldwide rely upon the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10), a standardized system used to categorize and code diseases, symptoms, and health conditions. In the United States, ICD-10 codes serve as the foundation for medical records, insurance billing, epidemiological research, and public health policy.

Without specific ICD-10 codes, severe conditions may remain invisible in the healthcare data ecosystem - making it harder to track, study, or provide adequate care.

This is precisely the challenge facing thousands of Americans suffering from persistent severe adverse events after receiving a Covid vaccine - a condition recently defined as Post-Covid Vaccine Syndrome (PCVS). As one of those individuals, I know all too well how debilitating and life-altering this condition can be. Our symptoms include exercise intolerance, excessive fatigue, brain fog, insomnia, and dizziness.

They develop shortly after vaccination, within a day or two, can become more severe in the days that follow, and persist over time.

At present, there are no dedicated ICD-10 codes for PCVS. This absence has significant consequences for patients, clinicians, researchers, and policymakers alike.

Visibility in the Healthcare System

One of the primary functions of ICD-10 codes is to make a condition visible within the healthcare system. Without specific codes, PCVS is at best recorded under vague categories like "unspecified adverse effect of vaccine" or "other specified postvaccination complication." Leery of contradicting the safe and effective narrative, many providers simply utilize codes for general symptoms such as "fatigue" or "paresthesia." As a result, PCVS is effectively lost in a sea of unrelated data.

Dedicated codes would allow providers to document PCVS in a standardized way, ensuring it is recognized in patient records, insurance claims, and national health databases. This visibility is crucial for legitimizing PCVS in the eyes of both a conflicted medical community and a polarized public.

Facilitating Research and Data Collection

Medical research thrives on accurate, reliable data. Without discrete ICD-10 codes, it is extremely difficult to track how many of us are affected by PCVS, what our symptoms are, how long they last, and what treatments are effective.

Currently, researchers who want to study PCVS must sift through miscellaneous adverse event codes, searching for possible cases - a process that is slow, imprecise, and prone to undercounting. Specific codes would enable more precise epidemiological studies, making it easier to identify risk factors, compare outcomes, and develop evidence-based treatment guidelines.

Improving Public Health Response and Policy

Public health agencies use ICD-10 coding data to monitor trends, allocate resources, and shape policy decisions. The lack of codes for PCVS means that policymakers are operating without a complete picture of vaccine safety profiles and long-term outcomes.

By establishing dedicated codes, health officials could more accurately assess the frequency and severity of PCVS, helping them balance the benefits and risks of vaccination programs and design better safety monitoring systems in the future. This transparency would strengthen public confidence in vaccination campaigns by demonstrating that potential adverse events are being taken seriously and tracked systematically.

Reducing Stigma and Improving Clinical Recognition

Those of us suffering from PCVS often face intense skepticism, with our symptoms crudely dismissed as unrelated or psychosomatic. The absence of recognized diagnostic codes can inadvertently reinforce this stigma, making it harder for those suffering with PCVS to be...