New Research Reportedly Supports DeSantis Administration Stance on Natural Immunity to COVID-19
July 20, 2022 Updated 3:47 P.M. ET
TALLAHASSEE (FLV) – The DeSantis Administration said the Governor’s support for natural immunity was backed by research that claims frequent COVID-19 booster shots could adversely affect a person’s immune response.
Governor DeSantis Press Secretary Christina Pushaw posted a Miami Herald article from September of 2021 where experts criticized the DeSantis Administration for supporting natural immunity as a way to protect people from being re-infected with COVID-19. Pushaw posted the Miami Herald article next to a recent article citing vaccination studies.
“There’s tremendous data that supports that natural immunity protects people from getting very ill and also protects people from being infected again,” Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo has said.
Experts in the Miami Herald article condemned the administration’s comments regarding COVID immunity.
“This is the issue with what these guys say. There’s a modicum of truth to what they’re saying but it’s not a generalize-able, actionable type of statement,” Infectious Disease Expert Sumit Chanda said to the Miami Herald.
The experts said it will take time to determine what offers the strongest protection: natural infection or vaccination or both.
However, on Wednesday Christina Pushaw posted an article that cited recommendations from the European Medicines Agency.
“According to European Medicines Agency recommendations, frequent COVID-19 booster shots could adversely affect the immune response and may not be feasible,” the article’s abstract said.
The article also cited a study from The Lancet about the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines and the waning of immunity with time.
“The study showed that immune function among vaccinated individuals 8 months after the administration of two doses of COVID-19 vaccine was lower than that among the unvaccinated individuals,” the abstract said.
