KENTUCKY — Senator Rand Paul said on Sunday he's not getting vaccinated against COVID-19 because he's already had the virus. 

Paul made the announcement on a conservative radio show Sunday morning, saying that he wouldn't change his mind until he sees evidence that people previously infected with COVID-19 contracting the virus again.

"Until they show me evidence that people who have already had the infection are dying in large numbers, or being hospitalized or getting very sick, I just made my own personal decision that I’m not getting vaccinated because I’ve already had the disease and I have natural immunity," Paul said.

The junior Senator from Kentucky was one of the first U.S. Senators to contract COVID-19, announcing his positive test in March 2020.

While Paul has asserted that people previously infected with the virus like himself have natural immunity, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends those who have been previously infected get vaccinated because experts are still not certain of how long natural immunity lasts.

Contrasting Paul, Kentucky's other U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell has repeatedly promoted the vaccine along with former President Donald Trump, who've both received the shot.

Paul has long been a critic of vaccines and COVID-19 mitigation efforts, often sparring in public hearings with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert. In their latest clash, Paul attempted to press Fauci on National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for a lab in Wuhan, China – a false claim that has been espoused among GOP lawmakers such as Sen. Paul and Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.