People who’ve already had COVID-19 should still get the vaccine
How many Americans are now COVID-protected?
By CNN staff | January 29, 2021 at 12:23 PM EST – Updated January 29 at 12:23 PM
(CNN) – As many as a third of Americans may now have some degree of protection against COVID-19, according to a new CNN analysis.
Between coronavirus vaccinations and natural immunity for those who have recovered from an infection, about 12%, and perhaps as much as a third, of Americans have some immunity.
But, officials urge continued vigilance.
“Getting vaccinated does not say now I have a free pass to travel, nor does it say that I have a free pass to put aside all of the public health measures that we talk about all the time,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, said.
About 6% of the U.S. population has been vaccinated against COVID-19, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
COVID-19: Stop the spread of germs
While cases across much of the country are plateauing, that’s not expected to last.
The virus keeps mutating.
“What we’re not going to see are these new variants – much more infectious viruses, much more easily transmitted even causing more serious illness – are now going to overlay on top of that very high baseline,” said Michael Osterholm with the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.
“So, what we can expect to see in the course of the next … 6 to 14 weeks is something we haven’t even come close to experiencing yet.”
But, health experts say, even with the virus variants, there is something that we can do to keep infection numbers down.
“The good news is that it’s still spread by small droplets,” according to Dr. Paul Offit, a member of the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory group. “It still can be largely prevented by masking and physical distancing.”
One final thing to keep in mind.
Experts say people who’ve already had COVID-19 should still get the vaccine, because it should provide additional immunity.
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