--- title: "Elon Musk: I Refuse to Get a COVID Vaccine" description: "Elon Musk revealed that he will not be getting a COVID vaccine once they become available. Learn more about this New York Times interview." date: "2020-09-29" modified: "2020-10-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musk-refuse-covid-vaccine" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "coronavirus" - "covid" - "covid19" - "elon musk" - "the digest" - "vaccine" --- # Elon Musk: I Refuse to Get a COVID Vaccine ![In a New York Times Opinion interview, Elon Musk raveled that he's not planning on getting a COVID vaccine once one becomes available.]() *\Image: Steve Jurvetson\* ## Not At Risk? In a [*New York Times* interview]() with tech journalist Kara Swisher, Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed that he's not planning on getting a COVID vaccine once it becomes available. "You won’t get a vaccine," Swisher mused. "Why is that?" "I’m not at risk for COVID, nor are my kids," Musk answered. Musk has had a complicated track record when it comes to the ongoing pandemic — and as he himself admitted to Swisher, it's "a hot button issue where rationality takes a backseat." But it's undeniably been a weird turn for the scientifically-minded entrepreneur, who's [spread misleading information]() about the virus and infamously tweeted in early March that he predicted there to be "close to zero new cases” by the "end of April." He also [opined]() that "the coronavirus panic is dumb." ## Back to Work Musk also became embroiled in a [heated back and forth]() in May with local authorities in Alameda County, home of one of his electric car company's factories. Musk pushed for a [premature reopening]() of the facility, despite local lockdown rules forbidding a return to workplaces. To Musk, it seems as though the pandemic is essentially just nature taking its course. When Swisher pushed him, telling him that "this storm is coming again," Musk retorted with a blunt "everybody dies." ## Shut It Down Musk also shut down when Swisher asked him to put himself in the shoes of Tesla workers called back to work during a time when the nation's battle with COVID-19 was only getting started. In fact, days after restarting production, workers [started testing positive]() for the coronavirus. "Let's just move on," Musk pleaded. "Kara, I do not want to get into a debate about COVID, this situation." **READ MORE:** [Elon Musk: 'AI Doesn't Need to Hate Us to Destroy Us']() \[*The New York Times*\] **More on Musk:** *[Elon Musk: “I Feel a Bit Bad About Hating on the Oil and Gas Industry”]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()