Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) says he will not get vaccinated against COVID-19 because he contracted the virus and has “natural immunity.”
During an interview with WABC 770 on Sunday, the Kentucky senator said, “I’ve just made my own personal decision that I’m not getting vaccinated cause I’ve already had the disease, and I have natural immunity now.”
He continued, “You know, in a free country, you would think people would honor the idea that each individual would get to make their medical decisions, that it wouldn’t be big brother coming in telling me what I have to do. Are they also going to tell me I can’t have a cheeseburger for lunch?”
Listen to his comments below:
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) on WABC 770 AM today: "I've just made my own personal decision that I'm not getting vaccinated because I've already had the disease and I have natural immunity now." pic.twitter.com/5JVJZUFp6X
— The Recount (@therecount) May 23, 2021
Paul tested positive last year for the COVID-19 and has been skeptical of public health guidelines regarding the virus.
Health experts say that individuals who contracted the virus can receive protection from getting infected again, so-called “natural immunity,” however, studies have shown that protection appears to begin to wear off after about 90 days.
Additionally, health experts are unsure whether a prior infection will protect individuals against different variants of the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that getting vaccinated will provide protection for not only the individual, but “may also protect people around you, particularly people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.”
Paul is not the only senator who has questioned the push for Americans to get vaccinated.
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) said during an interview with conservative Wisconsin radio host Vicki McKenna, “The science tells us that vaccines are 95% effective, so if you have a vaccine, quite honestly, what do you care if your neighbor has one or not?”
“You’ve got a vaccine. Science is telling you it’s very, very effective. Why is this big push to make sure everybody gets a vaccine, to the point when you better impose it, you’re going to shame people, you’re going to force them to carry a card to prove that they’ve been vaccinated so they can just stay in society,” he continued.
Johnson also said he is “getting highly suspicious of what’s happening here.”
Neither senator is an infectious disease expert.