Individuals who have had COVID-19 have a high likelihood of having immunity to it for at least five months. However, evidence suggests that those with antibodies may still be able to carry and spread the virus, noted a study of British healthcare workers.

Preliminary findings suggest that reinfections in people with COVID-19 antibodies from a past infection are rare, with 44 cases seen among 6,614 people in the study who had been previously infected. Yet, it means that those who contracted the disease in the first wave of the pandemic in the early months of last year may now be vulnerable to contracting the infection again. Experts cautioned that people with this natural immunity - acquired through having had the infection in the past - may still be able carry the SARS-CoV-2 virus in their nose and throat and could in advertently spread it… (Reuters, January 14, 2021)