Originally Posted by
italdesign
Maybe b/c there's a lot of antibody tests being put out and media reporting that testing positive (having anti-Covid-19 antibody) likely confers immunity, when we really have no idea whether it does or not. For example, even if there is immunity, what if it's from the T cell. People need to understand this is just an unproven hypothesis, which has not always been clearly stated.
This is my concern too -- as FlyBitCoin points out, it's almost certain that actual antibodies give some sort of immunity, but:
- Are there levels of antibodies from exposure that don't confer full immunity, i.e. if I was exposed to a very light dose and never showed symptoms but test positive for antibodies, and a few months later get coughed on by 10 super-spreaders, am I guaranteed not to get it? I truly don't know the answer, looking for medical insight here.
- What tests are being used and how sure are we/they about their accuracy of measuring antibodies for this specific coronavirus? The criteria for determining overall group exposure numbers (and potential future herd immunity) might be different than the criteria for an "immunity passport"
I have some very deep concerns about the "immunity passport" concept. For those concerned about government overreach, this goes so far beyond anything that's been done so far. Not only does it require a huge regulation and enforcement system (to authenticate testing and enforce restrictions on everyone else), but it requires huge social safety net decisions. Read about the chinese smartphone system and people who are all of a sudden told to isolate and are barred from stores and transport, with no reason given. Think that can't be abused? Make the financial or privilege incentive for having it/working too high, and people in and in contact with higher risk groups will flock to parties to try to get it, or forge certificates. Make the compensation for not being allowed to go out/go on vacation/etc too high, and people who have immunity will be resentful of the rest of us laying around while they do all the work. Expecting the government to balance all that right, well...
And of course, if the false positive rate is even 1% and you send thousands of supposedly "immune" workers into nursing homes with less protection...