Elon Musk claims he tested positive and negative for coronavirus on the same day after four tests

Elon Musk has previously been accused of spreading misinformation about the coronavirus pandemic
REUTERS
13 November 2020

Elon Musk is claiming he received two positive and two negative coronavirus test results on the same day.

The SpaceX founder shared what he described as “bogus” findings from four rapid antigen tests on Twitter on Thursday evening.

“Something extremely bogus is going on," wrote Musk on the social media platform.

"Was tested for covid four times today. Two tests came back negative, two came back positive. 

“Same machine, same test, same nurse. Rapid antigen test from BD.”

Musk appeared to warn others about the accuracy of the tests as he said: “If it’s happening to me, it’s happening to others."

He told his followers that he would be getting Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests from seperate labs, adding that the results for the PCR tests should take about 24 hours.

Unlike PCR tests, which detect the virus’s genetic material, antigen testing looks for proteins that are specific to the virus.

They require a swab to be taken and are also only used to determine whether a person is currently infected.

The process is usually quicker than PRC testing and can provide results in as little as 15 minutes.

Musk said that he was currently not experiencing any Covid-19 symptoms but over the past few fays he had “mild sniffles" a cough and a slight fever.

It comes after Musk faced accusations of spreading misinformation about the virus from Dr Angela Rasmussen, a virologist and associate research scientist at the Center of Infection and Immunity at the Columbia University School of Public Health.

Dr Rasmussen took issue with Musk’s claim that there were a “ridiculous number of false positive tests” and that false positives were the reason why cases were so high in the US.

The virologist argued that hospitalisations were not decreasing and deaths were starting to increase in the most heavily affected states in the US.

“No one benefits if people with platforms allowing them to reach millions are spreading demonstrably false information and public health guidance,” said Dr Rasmussen in response to a person who argued that Musk’s claims should not be dismissed on the basis that he is not an expert on the matter.

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