Recovered Covid-19 Patients Can Be Reinfected: Task Force

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Spokesperson for the Covid-19 Handling Task Force, Wiku Adisasmito, said that there were several cases of reoccurring Covid-19 infection in Indonesia even though the body of recovered patients should have naturally formed the antibody.

The reinfection phenomenon, Wiku explained, was still questioned by scientists. "The SARS-CoV-2 virus is a new type of coronavirus, so the immunity after exposure is still a question for scientists," Wiku said in a virtual press conference on Thursday, February 18, 2021.

However, Wiku quoted a study by the Hong Kong Medical Journal published in 2020 that there were possible factors causing survivors to be reinfected, including hidden viruses in the body, cross-contamination of other strange viruses, and false-positive test results.

This indicated that recovered patients had no excuse to neglect the predetermined health protocols, Wiku underlined.

The government through the Health Ministry had also passed a new regulation that allowed people who have recovered from the disease to undergo vaccination.

"Survivors can be vaccinated three months after being recovered," as noted in the circular inked by the Acting Director-General of Disease Prevention and Control of the Health Ministry, Maxi Rein Rondonuwu, on February 11, 2021, 2021.

However, Wiku asserted that the Covid-19 vaccine could provide a 100-percent guarantee of a person not being exposed to the coronavirus. Thus the task force appealed to the public, including survivors, to remain disciplined in implementing the health protocols.

Also Read: Anies Baswedan Responds to Covid-19 Anti-Vaxxers Issue

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