STUBBORN Rand Paul has vowed he WON’T get a Covid jab.
The Kentucky Senator had coronavirus over 12 months ago, and reckons he still has “natural immunity” – contrary to the CDC’s lifesaving advice.
The Republican told radio host John Catsimatidis that he was refusing the jab until he saw more “evidence that people who have already had the infection are dying in large numbers or being hospitalized or getting very sick”.
This is despite John Hopkins University saying that, as of Sunday May 23, 3.5million people worldwide have died from the coronavirus.
Sen. Paul added: “I just made my own personal decision that I’m not getting vaccinated because I’ve already had the disease and I have natural immunity.”
This revelation comes despite it being more than a year since Rand tested positive for the coronavirus.
Back in March 2020 it was announced on his Twitter account that he was infected but, “feeling fine and in quarantine.
“He is asymptomatic and was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events.
“He was not aware of any direct contact with any infected person.”
There’s evidence that reinfection is unlikely for at least three months even for people who had a mild case of Covid.
That’s how long New York City researchers found stable levels of protective antibodies in a study of nearly 20,000 patients of the Mount Sinai Health System last year.
Sen. Paul today told Catsimatidis on WABC 770 AM: “In a free country, you would think people would honor the idea that each individual would get to make the medical decision, that it wouldn’t be a big brother coming to tell me what I have to do.”
He ranted: “Are they also going to tell me I can’t have a cheeseburger for lunch?
“Are they going to tell me that I have to eat carrots only and cut my calories?
“All that would probably be good for me, but I don’t think big brother ought to tell me to do it.”
The ophthalmologist added that as he doesn’t believe that having a vaccine offers more protection than gaining immunity from an infection, he won’t have any jabs.
This flies in the face of advice from experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who say, “you should be vaccinated regardless of whether you already had Covid.
“That’s because experts do not yet know how long you are protected from getting sick again after recovering from Covid.
“Even if you have already recovered it is possible that you could be infected with the virus that causes Covid again.”
The CDC adds: “What we do know is that Covid-19 has caused very serious illness and death for a lot of people.
“If you get [it], you also risk giving it to loved ones who may get very sick. Getting a Covid-19 vaccine is a safer choice.”
Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, told CBS This Morning that scientists are tracking data on the virus and possible variants.
He says it was still possible an additional shot would be needed later this year to ward off possible infection.
Dr Fauci also stressed that those who haven’t been fully vaccinated still need to wear masks – even if they are largely spending time with people who have been inoculated.
In the Senate, meanwhile, there has been no hard-and-fast rule, but most senators have worn masks around the Capitol.
Sen. Paul has refused, despite complaints from some of his fellow senators.
“If you’ve had the disease or you’ve been vaccinated and you’re several weeks out from the second dose, throw your mask away,” Paul told Fox News in January.
He’s also slammed Dr Fauci, for “acting like an ignoramus every day of the week” over face masks as their ongoing feud continues.
The Senator has repeatedly clashed with the expert, and even dismissed the expert as a “Mr Little Dictator” over his call for kids to wear face coverings.
The latest PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll found that four out of 10 Republicans say they do not plan to get a Covid jab.
Just four per cent of Democrats and 27 per cent of independent voters said they do not plan to get vaccinated, according to this latest poll.
However, about 60 per cent of US adults said they had already been jabbed, and another 14 per cent said they planned to.
CNN reported today that Rhode Island is now the eighth state to have administered at least one Covid-19 shot to 70 per cent of its adult population, according to data from the CDC.
The state joins Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Vermont, which have also vaccinated at least 70 per cent of their adult population, it adds.
