"Lingering fear" refers to a feeling of being scared or anxious that stays with a person for a longer period of time, even after the immediate danger or cause of fear has passed. Full definition
Then, in the 1980's interest rates stayed high even while inflation fell because of investors lingering fear of inflation. (retailinvestor.org)
Because of the relatively recent emergence of open adoptions, there are still lingering fears and misconceptions about what open adoption actually is, and what it means to be a part of one. (adoptfamilyconnections.org)
Despite lingering fears about cuts to health care in Washington, it's worth noting that federal funding for the state's massive Medicaid program is still on track to go up, not down, in the year ahead. (empirecenter.org)