SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said that he tested positive for Covid-19 and then negative on the same day.
Musk, who is having symptoms of a "typical cold" and "nothing unusual so far," did four tests on Thursday.
"Something extremely bogus is going on. 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," tweeted Musk, who is known for his cavalier attitude towards the disease.
The test that the SpaceX CEO mentioned in the tweet refers to the BD Veritor test, a nasal swabs-based test designed to give results in 15 minutes.
Something extremely bogus is going on. 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.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2020
His tweet, however, didn't sit well with Twitterati who called the post "irresponsible" and said he was "feeding" to the conspiracy theorists.
False positives are rare and false negatives are fairly common. Do the math, “genius”
— AIRWOLF! (@redmond_BDTW) November 13, 2020
I can't believe people think you are smart.
— (@s_a_t_c_h_e_l) November 13, 2020
Insanely irresponsible tweet.
— Ray [REDACTED] (@RayRedacted) November 13, 2020
Honest would have included waiting for the PCR test and including if they were false negative or false positive. This tweet gives rise to all the COVID deniers who say no tests are reliable. Rapids are often false negative without symptoms.
— Nautigirl77 (@kleighfree77_k) November 13, 2020
It’s called science Elon. Even HIV tests aren’t 100% accurate. These are brand new. There’s no bogus. Don’t feed the stupid people with more conspiracy theories.
— BittBurger (@BittBurger) November 13, 2020
Because they’ve said the rapid tests are only 50-60% effective. That’s why they use PCR tests to be more accurate
— Sabrina Astran (@SabrinaAstran) November 13, 2020
Elon Musk shows the world the reason for the massive spike. False positives and taking the test several times a day. https://t.co/hsBjNIrfew
— Calvin United (@Calvin_United) November 13, 2020
Something extremely bogus is going on. Someone so successful in one field repeatedly and publicly demonstrates himself to be so abjectly unable to grasp simple concepts in another, even to the detriment of millions of people who hang off his every word. https://t.co/W5H5hmjGq6
— Medlife Crisis (Rohin) (@MedCrisis) November 13, 2020
According to a report in Forbes, the test is being used due to the current emergency situation even though it has not yet been cleared or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
"If it's happening to me, it's happening to others. I'm getting PCR tests from separate labs. Results will take about 24 hours," Musk said.
A vocal critic of sweeping restriction put in the wake of the pandemic, the tech billionaire had earlier said that he would not take a vaccine against the disease when it becomes available.
In an interview on the New York Times' podcast "Sway" published in September, Musk even defended the opening of a Tesla factory in California in defiance of the local lockdown rules.
(With IANS inputs)