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Sen. Rand Paul has repeatedly claimed people like him who already caught and recovered from COVID-19 have natural immunity and don't need to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.

However, the reality of thesituationis complex, and recent research has shown previously infected people still can benefit from getting the vaccine.

There's still a lot of research being done into the coronavirus that sparked thepandemic,including inquiries into how long naturalimmunity lasts and how much protection it provides over time.

More: Kentucky's Rand Paul the first known US senator to test positive for coronavirus

It is a generally accepted fact, as Paul has pointed out, people who've previously been infected with COVID-19 get natural immunity from it.

However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says "experts do not yet know how long you are protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19."

After all, this is a new disease that was identified less than two years ago.

The World Health Organization says people who've already been infected should get vaccinated against the coronavirus anyway, unless their health care provider tells them they shouldn't.

"Even if youve had a previous infection, the vaccine acts as a booster that strengthens the immune response," WHO's websitesays.

Paul defended his highly publicized decision not to get vaccinated against the coronavirus in a Courier Journal column this week.

"So, when I go out to the media and say that I, as a recovered COVID patient, will not get a vaccine that is not proven to help me nor proved I even need the science deniers, bureaucrats and media typically go nuts," Kentucky's Republican senator wrote. "I choose to follow the science with COVID, rather than submit to fear-mongering."

However, recent research has indicated people who previously caughtCOVID-19, and thus received some degree of natural immunity,can still benefit from getting vaccinated.

The New York Times reported this week: "Immunity to the coronavirus lasts at least a year, possibly a lifetime, improving over time especially after vaccination, according to two new studies. ...Together, the studies suggest that most people who have recovered from Covid-19 and who were later immunized will not need boosters."

The results of one of those two studies "suggest that people who have recovered from Covid-19 and who have later been vaccinated will continue to have extremely high levels of protection against emerging variants, even without receiving a vaccine booster down the line," per the New York Times.

Meanwhile, the Penn Institute of Immunology released a study in April that showed people who'd"recovered from COVID-19 had a robust antibody response" after getting just one dose of the two-dose coronavirus vaccines.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., listens to a reporter after speaking on the Senate floor, Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)(Photo: Jacquelyn Martin, AP)

"The findings suggest that only a single vaccine dose in individuals recovered from COVID-19 may be enough to induce a maximal immune response," anews release said. "This is likely due to a primary immune response because of their natural infection."

COVID Watch: U of L seeks people who have had virus for study of ongoing symptoms

The possibility of using a one-dose vaccine regimen for previously infected peopleis still being examined.

Researchers also areexaminingwhether getting the coronavirus vaccine helps alleviate persistent "long COVID" symptoms some people have experienced after getting infected with COVID-19.

There have been anecdotal reports of people whose long-term symptoms improved after they got vaccinated, and researchers are looking into it.

In hisCourier Journal column this week, Paul cited examples of research that had promising findings about the effectiveness of natural immunity.

For example, the senatorcited a study helmed by researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology that showed evidence of persistent immunity for people who'd previously beeninfected.

"The researchers found durable immune responses in the majority of people studied," according to a National Institutes of Healthnews release."As seen in previous studies, the number of antibodies ranged widely between individuals. But, promisingly, their levels remained fairly stable over time, declining only modestly at 6 to 8 months after infection."

In his Courier Journal column, Paul also highlighted the extreme unlikelihood that someone who already had COVID-19 will getinfected again as part of his rationale for skipping the coronavirus vaccine.

Paul is right that cases of people catching COVID-19 for a second time have been found to be rare. Still, the CDC and other public health experts have noted reinfection is possible, albeit quite unlikely.

Ultimately, whether or not to get the coronavirus vaccine right now is a personal choice.

More: Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul says he won't get COVID-19 vaccine due to natural immunity

Paul has decided not to get one, citing his prior infection with COVID-19 last year as his primary reason.

However, his decision flies in the face of recommendations by the CDC, the WHO and manypublic health experts, whichsay people who've previously been infected still should get vaccinated against this dangerous virus.

Reach reporter Morgan Watkins: 502-582-4502; mwatkins@courierjournal.com; Twitter:@morganwatkins26.

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Fact check: Rand Paul supports skipping the vaccine if you've had COVID-19. Is he right? - Courier Journal