Get Vaccinated Even If You've Gotten COVID-19, Study Suggests

Even those who’ve had COVID-19 should be vaccinated, suggests data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A study in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), shows 2.3 times the number of reinfections with natural immunity compared to breakthrough infections in those who are vaccinated. CDC investigators examined data from Kentucky residents infected with COVID-19 in 2020. They compared the vaccination status of those reinfected in May and June 2021 to residents who had not been reinfected. “May and June were selected because of vaccine supply and eligibility requirement considerations; this period was more likely to reflect resident choice to be vaccinated, rather than eligibility to receive vaccine,” the study states. “Control participants were Kentucky residents with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in 2020 who were not reinfected through June 30, 2021.”