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In spite of his infection, he says he’s feeling fine.

The important thing to realize about vaccines is that they are not cures. The reason you want to get one of the available COVID-19 vaccines is not because it’s a 100% guarantee that you’ll never get the virus for the rest of your life. Medicine doesn’t work like that. The reason you want a vaccine is to drastically reduce the odds that you’ll contract the virus and, in the event that you do, your symptoms will be severely lessened or, hopefully, nonexistent. Today, we got a good test case of the vaccine’s efficacy in the form of Real Time host Bill Maher.

A representative of Real Time announced today that Maher had tested positive for COVID-19 during the weekly PCR test the staff has been undergoing since the beginning of the pandemic. However, according to the rep, he’s completely asymptomatic and feels physically fine. Maher has already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, as he has mentioned on his show, and now we see the results of that: while he still got infected, the virus is barely affecting him.

“Thanks to all wishing me get well,” Maher said on his personal Twitter. “Hard to do since I feel perfectly fine, but I appreciate it! Most upset about ending my streak going back to 1993 of never missing a Politically Incorrect or Real Time episode. Oh well, even Cal Ripken had to sit one out at some point.”

Thanks to all wishing me get well – hard to do since I feel perfectly fine, but I appreciate it! Most upset about ending my streak going back to 1993 of never missing a Politically Incorrect or Real Time episode. Oh well, even Cal Ripken had to sit one out at some point.

— Bill Maher (@billmaher) May 14, 2021

No other members of the show’s staff have tested positive for COVID-19. Nevertheless, out of an abundance of caution, this week’s taping of Real Time has been cancelled to give Maher some time to get the virus out of his system. It’s a shame, as this week’s episode had some great guests lined up, including Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Max Brooks. Oh well. Maybe in a few weeks.