![]() ![]() She and her parents spent Christmas with two siblings, but both tested negative. Nancy typically works from home, and when she does go to her workplace, she stays masked except for when she is alone in her office. “I don’t know how in the world we got it,” she says. Both of her parents were vaccinated and scheduled to get boosted this week until they also developed COVID-19. Nancy, who is in her early 40s, takes care of her parents, who live with her in a southwestern suburb of Chicago. They are also much less likely to be hospitalized and die. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fully vaccinated people who develop breakthrough infections are less likely to have serious symptoms compared with those who are unvaccinated. That doesn’t mean that the vaccines aren’t doing their main job: to keep people from getting seriously ill from COVID-19. But because no vaccine is 100% effective, some people like Nancy who are fully vaccinated and even boosted are still getting what are called “breakthrough” COVID-19 infections. Most people who get COVID-19 are unvaccinated. I did everything right, and I just thought, man, I’ve been doing it for nothing.” Understanding breakthrough infections “Initially, I didn’t take the news very well at all. “I thought I’d be the last person to catch COVID,” she says, her voice hoarse from coughing. Yet last week, Nancy learned she had COVID-19. “I did everything that we’re supposed to do to stay healthy,” she says. She is also fully vaccinated and boosted. Since the beginning of the pandemic, she has worn double masks in public, had most of her groceries delivered, kept social gatherings small and dutifully used her hand sanitizer. Nancy thought her hypervigilance would keep her safe from COVID-19. ![]()
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