NCAA Backflips on Natural Immunity, Says Athletes Who Had COVID Now Considered Vaccinated

Natural immunity from getting a COVID infection will now count as “fully vaccinated” according to new NCAA guidelines for college athletes.

According to ESPN, the organization’s definition of “fully vaccinated individuals” has been expanded from those “within two months of receiving the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, five months of receiving the Pfizer vaccine series or six months of receiving the Moderna vaccine series” (and those who have been boosted) to include athletes “within 90 days of a documented COVID-19 infection.”

I’ll get to why that’s vital in just a moment, but first, let’s take a quick look at the rest of the details.

The NCAA still suggests — but apparently does not require — a five-day quarantine period following a positive test and wearing a mask for five more days.

There, the NCAA is basically just parroting the latest CDC guidance. It’s become so difficult to tell what the CDC really wants people to do (and whether or not the guidance even makes sense) that CNET felt the need to publish an explainer piece on Tuesday. – READ MORE