‘A mistake taking off that mask’: Vaccinated people still getting COVID-19 in breakthrough cases

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Sean Mazer got vaccinated from COVID-19.

Five months later, he and his wife both tested positive.

The Mazers are breakthrough cases, and this type of affection is drawing a lot of attention.

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“I saw breakthrough cases here and there in last few months,” said Dr. Aftab Khan, an internal medicine specialist. “But I never expected seeing five breakthrough cases in less than a week.”

He said he believes the breakthrough cases will continue to come, “especially from the delta variant.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said, in rare instances, the highly contagious delta variant is infecting vaccinated people, and those vaccinated people can then spread the virus to others.

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“It was a mistake taking off that mask,” Mazer said.

Mazer received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, so he got rid of the mask when the CDC said he could.

He’s 54 and has diabetes, so his compromised immune system makes him more susceptible to COVID-19.

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After falling ill, he called his physician, and his symptoms were in line with all the other breakthrough cases they had seen.

Mazer tested positive Monday and is now starting to feel better.

Scientists said breakthrough cases show the vaccines’ strength by protecting against serious illness.

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