CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some people who have recovered from COVID-19 don't think they need the vaccine. But will natural immunity be enough to protect them?
Let's connect the dots.
Health experts say no, recovering from COVID-19 is not enough to protect you from getting the virus again. Your antibodies may reduce your risk of getting sick, but the vaccines offer much better protection.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says people are twice as likely to be reinfected with COVID-19 if they don't receive the vaccine.
Relying on natural immunity can also put others at risk. Doctors say people who are reinfected with COVID-19 are more likely to not show any symptoms.
That means they risk spreading the virus to children and people with compromised immune systems without even realizing it. And just because your body fought off COVID-19 the first time, does not mean round two will go the same way.
Cases are often milder, but there are exceptions to the rule. The virus is mutating, which means we are seeing more reinfected patients in the hospital.
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