By Hadassa Kalatizadeh
The COVID-19 pandemic, the ensuing shutdown, the social distancing and masks all came as a shock to New Yorkers. Now, New Yorkers are looking to one thing for relief– antibody testing. Doctors and scientists have given clues that possessing antibodies means patients have had some exposure to the virus. It is not yet conclusive, however, whether having these antibodies means a person cannot get Covid-19 again. It is not known if they can still pass on the virus on to other people. Still, the idea has circulated that antibodies will play a role in determining who can go back to work, or start to socialize or travel again.
“In general, a positive antibody test is presumed to mean a person has been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, at some point in the past,” as per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. “We currently don’t have enough information yet to say whether someone will definitely be immune and protected from reinfection if they have antibodies to the virus.”
As per a recent article in the NY Times, many people across the city, however, have already come to the conclusion that the test results will be a prediction of their future necessity to continue the labor of social distancing. Some people who have received positive antibody results, are celebrating that they have already beat the virus and have the whole thing behind them. They feel less anxious, knowing their body already fought off the disease to a certain degree.
Testing for antibodies has become very popular. Even when the test comes out negative, there is reason to feel triumph. It can be taken to mean that the social distancing has been successful, and all the sacrifices made were not for naught. In the early days of the pandemic, people did not have access to testing. They still do not know if they fought a regular cold or if it was indeed the coronavirus. Now that testing is readily available, New Yorkers have been eager to see the results.
“I would hate to never actually know,” said Lauren McFarland, 48, who lives in Brooklyn with her three sons. “It’s one fact we can count on in this whole thing.” Her family has tested positive for antibodies, and she hopes the results will have positive ramifications for their impending future. “What if there is a stamp in our passport, or we are a different color on an app, or it means the boys can go to sleepaway camp?” said Ms. McFarland. “My friends and I joke that the positives can hang out with the positives.”
These ideas all stem from statements made by The World Health Organization. The WHO has suggested, via a science brief put out in April, that in the future antibodies “could serve as the basis for an ‘immunity passport’ or ‘risk-free certificate’ that would enable individuals to travel or to return to work assuming that they are protected against re-infection”. Still, there is no evidence that antibodies can protect someone from getting infected again.
Doubtlessly, there is still a lot that is unknown in regards to this novel pandemic. Any bit of confidence and assurance is welcome in these times. This is likely where the allure of the antibody testing comes in. Even if the testing can bring can only bring a bit of peace of mind to some people, it will be considered quite worthwhile. So, while there is still no certainty of immunity for those who test positive, many have decided they will take any reassurance they can get for now.
