Summer fundraiser: Help keep our essential work going into 2026

Long COVID research and support programs — and public health infrastructure at large — are under attack from the Trump administration. The Sick Times is helping deliver the most vital news and hold this administration, along with other major institutions, accountable during these difficult times.

But we need your help to keep our essential work going into 2026. Our start-up grant from the biotech fund Kanro, which we received last spring, will run out at the end of this year.

If we don’t raise more money from other sources to pay our staff and freelance contributors, we’ll have to significantly cut back on our reporting. We won’t be able to publish as many original Long COVID news and commentary articles. Our weekly podcast, Still Here, and social media feeds would also take hits.

We’re trying to prepare for that stress in advance. So, this July, we’re aiming to raise $30,000 from our readers.

We’re also aiming to have 100 readers set up new monthly donations. People who donate monthly — at any amount! — help make our work more sustainable, since we know we can count on your regular support.

As tokens of our appreciation, we’re offering new merch for people who start monthly gifts during this fundraiser:

• Pins for any new monthly donation. The pins will feature our Caladrius mascot and mission (No pandemic denial, minimizing, or gaslighting here!).
• Hats for new monthly donations over $20/month, or new one-time donations over $50. These will be classic dad hats featuring our purple logo.

Meeting these two goals will extend our budget into 2026. You’ll also help us demonstrate to potential major donors and foundations that we are a news source worth supporting. Some mainstream media institutions and journalism funders think that Long COVID news isn’t a good investment — let’s prove them wrong.

And if you have any suggestions for major donors and foundations who know the value of independent Long COVID news, please send them our way.

Plus, as another part of our efforts to become more sustainable, we are going to start including advertising in our newsletter and our website. We’re doing this as part of a network coordinated by the nonprofit News Revenue Hub, designed to help mission-driven newsrooms like ours expand our revenue without compromising editorial independence.

These ads, carefully vetted by News Revenue Hub and by our team, will help sustain our journalism along with your donations. Both share the ultimate goal of keeping The Sick Times free for all readers, without any paywalls or subscriptions.

Finally, we know that not all readers are able to donate, particularly as social support programs like Medicaid are under threat. If you aren’t able to contribute yourself, here are three other ways to help us out:

• Share this post with a friend or family member, or share it on social media.
• Send us any ideas you have for potential funding sources.
• Email us and let us know why you find our work valuable! We might use your testimonial (if you’re okay with it) in a future email, podcast episode, or social media post.