Published: Monday 6 July 2026
Introducing the Count ME campaign: coming together for Australians with ME/CFS, long COVID and overlapping energy-limiting conditions
As we conclude a federal government funding cycle and prepare to seek renewed investment, Emerge Australia is proud to launch the Count ME campaign – a powerful movement to highlight the need for continued momentum and growth in support of research, advocacy, clinical education and patient services for Australians living with ME/CFS, long COVID and associated energy limiting conditions.
Over the coming months, Count ME will shine a spotlight on groundbreaking developments surrounding these often misunderstood and stigmatised conditions, and share critical insights to equip decision makers to ensure support to effectively meet the needs of our community. Count ME will feature new patient resources and Severe ME Week activations, along with primary research for Emerge Australia’s burden of disease study.
Why Count ME?
Because ME/CFS, long COVID and energy-limiting conditions have to count
More than 600,000 Australians live with ME/CFS, long COVID and related energy-limiting conditions, conditions that have been misunderstood, under-researched and left out of the data, systems and conversations that shape people’s lives. ME/CFS has carried that burden for decades. Long COVID has inherited the same dismissal and gaps in care almost overnight.
Being counted matters. It’s the difference between a condition the health system plans for and one it overlooks. Between research that gets funded and research that doesn’t happen. Between a person whose experience is believed, and one who has to fight to be taken seriously.
Count ME is Emerge Australia’s campaign to make sure our community is counted, in the data, in the health system, and in the decisions that affect our community’s lives.
Why Emerge Australia?
Emerge Australia has supported our community for more than 40 years, and for the past eight, government investment has helped us grow into a national, specialist organisation: supporting patients directly, educating clinicians, running research, and advocating in the rooms where policy gets made. It’s work no one else in Australia does at this scale, for our community, and it’s the reason ME/CFS and long COVID are harder to ignore today.
What to Expect?
Over the coming months, Count ME will bring you new research, patient resources and stories, and the evidence behind why this community can’t keep being left out of the count.
How Can I Support?
Follow along as Count ME unfolds and join us in support of Emerge Australia as we work together to ensure that Australians living with ME/CFS, long COVID and overlapping energy limiting conditions receive the attention and resources they deserve to improve their lives.
Stay connected on Emerge Australia socials for more – together we can make a difference.
