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Coronavirus: Elon Musk says he ‘supposedly’ contracted COVID-19 again

Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to social media early Monday to say he “supposedly” has contracted COVID-19 again, multiple news outlets are reporting.

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“COVID-19 is the virus of Theseus,” he tweeted shortly after 4 a.m. EDT. “How many gene changes before it’s not COVID-19 anymore? I supposedly have it again (sigh), but almost no symptoms.”

This isn’t the first time the 50-year-old tech magnate has announced a possible COVID-19 diagnosis on social media. In November 2020, Musk claimed that he received two negative and two positive results after taking four rapid COVID-19 tests in one day, The Wall Street Journal reported at the time. He later clarified that he “most likely” had contracted the virus, according to Reuters.

Early on in the pandemic, Musk criticized coronavirus lockdowns and downplayed the virus’ risks for several months, the Journal reported. But in April 2021, he tweeted that he does “support vaccines in general and COVID vaccines in particular,” according to CBS News.

In December, Musk told Time magazine that while he and his children have received the vaccine, he does not believe governments should mandate the shots.

On Sunday, the U.S. was averaging 30,120 new COVID-19 cases per day, down 12% over the past two weeks, according to The New York Times. Meanwhile, the nation averaged 793 daily deaths, a decrease of 39% from 14 days earlier, the newspaper reported.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Sunday that 65.5% of the U.S. population is considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19. About 44.7% of fully vaccinated residents have received a booster dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the agency said.

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