Editor's note: The video above is from March 2020.
Former Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, in prison for rape and sexual assault convictions, is reportedly not sick with the coronavirus but was being "closely monitored" after coming down with a fever, news outlets reported Tuesday.
A spokesperson couldn't "confirm nor deny" that Weinstein had COVID-19 for the second time. But on Thursday the Los Angeles Times reported that Weinstein does not have the virus.
His spokesman, Juda Engelmayer, told the newspaper that he's still hospitalized and "continues to be very closely monitored."
Times reporter James Queally tweeted that Weinstein's being watched because his underlying health issues are continuing to get worse and need treatment.
Weinstein, 68, who is serving a 23-year prison sentence at a maximum security prison near Buffalo, New York, was diagnosed with the coronavirus in March.
Given his age and underlying health conditions, Weinstein is among those at highest risk of severe complications or death from the coronavirus.
"It should come as no surprise that Mr. Weinstein has numerous maladies and conditions including a heart condition, high blood pressure and spinal stenosis," his representatives said in a statement to PEOPLE.
A New York State Department of Corrections spokesperson told The Guardian they could not comment on individual cases, but said anyone showing COVID-19 symptoms is isolated and tested.
Weinstein was convicted in February for the rape and sexual assault of two women. In California, he is awaiting trial on charges including rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual battery by restraint and sexual penetration by use of force. The counts involve five women and stem from events in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills from 2004 to 2013.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says cases of reinfection with COVID-19 have been reported, but are rare. The first confirmed case of reinfection in the U.S. happened with a 25-year-old Nevada man who tested positive in April and again in June. Scientists said there were too many genetic differences for it to be a recurrence of the original infection.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
