Anti-vaxxer contracts COVID-19, says he regrets skipping out on the vaccine

One man who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine ended up in the hospital after contracting the virus. Before July, Gumerocindo Vergara had no fears of the virus but that has all changed now. 

FOX 11’s Hal Eisner and photographer Joab Perez met Vergara at Holy Cross Medical Center. 

The 37-year-old construction worker from Pacoima was convinced he wouldn’t get the novel coronavirus. He believed friends who said - if he got vaccinated - the government would try to put something in his body to track him. 

Vergara contracted the virus and was administered to the hospital on July 7; he had a fever, sore throat, bad congestion and lost his sense of smell and taste. He thought he was going to die. 

In Spanish he told FOX 11 that he’s thankful to God he’s alive and survived. He wishes he had gotten the vaccine. 

RELATED: Los Angeles County reports over 3,000 new COVID-19 cases; more than 10,000 in last four days

Vergara was discharged from the hospital on July 23, as a precaution he’ll need to quarantine for 14 days to be safe.

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He says he regrets not getting the vaccine and encourages people to do so. 

"If I would’ve known the symptoms I had now, I would have done the vaccine," Vergara mentioned. 

When we talked, he just wanted to get home to his kids and girlfriend. All three have had COVID-19. Right now he says he’s better than he was a few weeks ago.

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