Reporter: “Did you get the vaccine or are you planning to get vaccinated?”
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.): “No, I had covid, so I don’t believe, you know, I think that probably provides me the best immunity possible, actually having had the disease.”
— Interview on CBS 58 Milwaukee, March 10
Doctors, public health experts, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are clear: Get the coronavirus vaccine even if you had covid-19.
Yes, people who had the disease produce antibodies that provide immunity from the coronavirus. But that immunity fades over time, and the body’s natural response may not be enough to prevent a repeat infection 90 days after the first one, the CDC says.
Reinfections, both mild and severe, have been well documented since the coronavirus emerged in late 2019. For example, a nursing intern in the Netherlands with no issues in her immune system contracted covid-19 in the spring and again in the summer of 2020, with stronger symptoms the second time. A nurse in Ohio got the disease twice, seven months apart. Hundreds more cases have been reported worldwide, although experts say they are widely undercounted. Continue reading.