I’ve already had COVID, do I still need to get the vaccine?

Yes, if you have had COVID you still need to get vaccinated. The immunity from vaccines offers better protection from future COVID infection than the immunity gained from having COVID.  We have real world data to show that people who have had COVID, but did not get vaccinated, were over five times more likely to be hospitalized from COVID than people who had been fully vaccinated with mRNA COVID vaccine.  Another recent study showed that people who had COVID, but did not get vaccinated were two times more likely to be infected than those who were fully vaccinated.

Why is this the case? The vaccine produces a predictable immune response and antibody levels while people who have had COVID infection have variable immune responses. A good analogy for this from Dr. Kimberly Manning is washing dishes in a dishwasher versus having a teenager wash them. The dishwasher works the same every time whereas the teenager may have a range of results.

So keep yourself and your family safe: get vaccinated even if you’ve had COVID.

Original post last update: September 24, 2021, 2:41 pm ET

Science review: SKB, HAY

Post updated: December 3, 2021, 9:30 am ET

Update review: SGB, JAB