Citing reports of heart complications, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine pose a greater risk to patients than any potential benefits for treating COVID-19.
Publication: covid-19
Snopes→ Poll: Black Americans Most Likely to Know a COVID-19 Victim
Twenty-six percent of nonwhite New Yorkers say a family member or close friend has died from COVID-19, compared with just 10% of white adults in New York City.
Hoax-Slayer→ SCAM – Fake Qantas Facebook Page Promising Free Flights
According to this Facebook post, Australian airline Qantas is giving away free flights in exchange for commenting and sharing. The post SCAM – Fake Qantas Facebook Page Promising Free Flights appeared first on Hoax-Slayer.
Health Feedback→ People who do not show COVID-19 symptoms can and do transmit it to others; physical distancing and face masks effectively reduce the risk of transmission
SUMMARY Claims that physical distancing (or social distancing) and using face masks or face coverings are not necessary went viral on Facebook in June 2020 (see examples here and here), following remarks by World Health Organization (WHO) official D
Snopes→ Did Anthony Fauci Say People No Longer Need to Wear Masks?
An old interview with Dr. Fauci made new rounds on social media during the coronavirus disease pandemic in 2020.
Snopes→ Was This Lung Removed from a COVID-19 Patient?
A patient in Chicago was so sick she had to receive a double-lung transplant.
Snopes→ Florida Migrant Towns Become Coronavirus Hot Spots in US
Once thought likely to be spared because of their remote locations and small populations, rural immigrant communities have seen spikes in infections while having fewer resources to deal with them.
Snopes→ Did ‘Captain America’ Movie Predict the Coronavirus Pandemic?
Even in a movie involving time travel, calling this a "prediction" takes more than a small stretch of the imagination.
Snopes→ Did Melinda Gates Say This About Black People and COVID-19 Vaccination?
A meme alleged she said Black Americans "must be" first in line for a vax, just behind heath care workers.
Health Feedback→ Brussels halted 5G rollout in 2019 to study its radiation emissions, not because any negative health effects had been demonstrated
REVIEW An article published in 2019 which went viral in June 2020 claims that the city of Brussels, Belgium, had stopped the rollout of 5G technology “due to [its] negative health effects”. The article further claims that published data “overwhe
Snopes→ Did a Medical Manufacturer Destroy Swabs After Trump’s Visit?
Puritan Medical Products said the swabs had to be destroyed "due to the number of individuals (officials, security personnel, and media) participating in the visit."
Snopes→ Many Forces Behind Alarming Rise in Virus Cases in 21 States
While there's no single reason to explain all the surges, experts think at least some are due to lifting restrictions put in place during the spring to stem the virus's spread.
Snopes→ 1.5 Million More Workers Seek Unemployment Benefits
The recovery from the economic fallout of COVID-19 has begun slowly — just one in nine jobs lost in March and April have returned.
Health Feedback→ German Ministry employee makes unsupported claim that COVID-19 pandemic is a global false alarm in widely circulated yet unsolicited opinion article
REVIEW An article posted by News Punch on 2 June 2020 partially reproduces a document originally published by the German outlet Tichys Einblick on 10 May 2020, claiming that it was leaked from Germany’s Interior Ministry. The document, titled KM 4
Snopes→ MLS to Resume Season with Fla. Tournament Starting July 8
The tournament will be played without fans at ESPN's Wide World of Sports complex at Walt Disney World.
Truth or Fiction?→ The ‘Asymptomatic Carriers’ of COVID-19 Controversy, Explained
On June 9 2020, what was framed as a World Health Organization (WHO) finding about asymptomatic spread of COVID-19 was shared seemingly everywhere — but within 24 hours, the organization had stepped in to issue an important clarification. A WHO
Snopes→ Are These New Zealanders Celebrating the End of COVID-19 Restrictions?
In June 2020, New Zealand lifted all social distancing restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic after going two weeks without a confirmed case.
Snopes→ With Recovery of Last Case, New Zealand Eradicates Virus
With the last known infected person now recovered, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was confident New Zealand had halted the spread of COVID-19 but it still must be prepared for more.
Health Feedback→ Article inaccurately claims that coronavirus vaccine by Oxford researchers caused animal test subjects to develop COVID-19
SUMMARY This article, published in late May 2020, received more than 280,000 views on Facebook and more than 24,000 interactions on social media. The article makes numerous claims about Bill Gates and the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine being developed by Oxford
Snopes→ ‘All Eyes’ on New York: Reopening Tests City Torn by Crises
After three bleak months ravaged by a pandemic, New York City enters the first phase of its reopening.
Truth or Fiction?→ Are ICE Detention Centers ‘Gassing Immigrants’ with a Chemical Disinfectant?
By June 4 2020, protests over the death of George Floyd had spread to every part of the United States and all around the world; because of the social upheaval, a claim that Immigration and Customs Enforcement was “gassing immigrants” in
Snopes→ Study on Safety of Malaria Drugs for Coronavirus Retracted
The May 22 report in Lancet was on hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, drugs long used for preventing or treating malaria but whose safety and effectiveness for COVID-19 are unknown.
Snopes→ On Sad Anniversary, Few to Mourn the D-Day Dead in Normandy
The 76th anniversary of D-Day will be one of the loneliest remembrances ever, as the coronavirus pandemic is keeping government leaders and elderly veterans away.
Truth or Fiction?→ Are New York City Police Officers Covering Badge Numbers with Black Bands During George Floyd Protests?
As protests over the death of George Floyd (and many other deaths of Black Americans at the hands of law enforcement) spread to all fifty states, a Facebook post claiming that the New York Police Department (NYPD) officers had obscured their badge nu
Snopes→ Top Pandemic Scientist Admits Sweden Could Have Battled Virus Better
Sweden, which only advised social distancing but did not shut down like other countries, has one of the highest death rates per capita from COVID-19 in the world.
Hoax-Slayer→ ‘Coronavirus Compensation’ Advance Fee Scam
According to this email, “administrator and management” have decided to award all of their email users with a coronavirus compensation payment. Supposedly,… The post ‘Coronavirus Compensation’ Advance Fee Scam appeared fir
Health Feedback→ Facebook posts spread unsupported anonymous claim that face mask use caused a lung infection in a healthy teenager
REVIEW A claim that a healthy 19-year-old grocery store worker was hospitalized for pleurisy, an inflammation of the tissue surrounding the lungs, due to her breathing in carbon dioxide and “her own bacteria” as a result of wearing a face mask,
Health Feedback→ The spread of COVID-19 is not related in any way to the deployment of 5G
REVIEW An article published on 4 May 2020 that went viral over the past few weeks claimed that new data demonstrate that 5G contributed to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, either as a direct cause or by worsening patients’ symptoms. Similar clai
Snopes→ Virus Taking Hold in Rural, Old Plantation Region of Alabama
Initially spared as the disease ravaged cities, rural areas in Alabama are now facing a “perfect storm.”
Snopes→ Are These Petri Dishes Coughed On With and Without a Mask?
This visual aid did not involve a person with COVID-19.
Truth or Fiction?→ Did Colorado Revise its COVID-19 Death Count from 1150 to 878 — and ‘Admit’ They Were Counting Deaths from Other Causes?
A May 16 2020 Facebook post claiming that Colorado had revised its COVID-19 death count from 1150 to 878 and “ADMITTED” that the state was including deaths from other causes in its count to make the virus seem more lethal took off across
Health Feedback→ Facebook posts misinterpret a study of 455 contacts of an asymptomatic COVID-19 carrier to claim that asymptomatic spread does not occur
REVIEW A meme being spread by Facebook posts in late May 2020 states that a study which “exposed” an asymptomatic COVID-19 carrier to 455 people found that none of the 455 people were infected. Some of the earliest instances of the meme were sha
Health Feedback→ Hand-held UV lights sold online to kill microbes are effective only in specific conditions and can be unsafe when used improperly
REVIEW A video promoting the supposed germicidal properties of a hand-held UV lamp recently circulated on social media. It claims that the lamp will “kill 99.99% of all the bacteria, viruses, and mold […] in 10 seconds and that it “d
Health Feedback→ To date, no therapy has been proven effective for preventing or treating COVID-19, contrary to claim by Dolores Cahill
REVIEW This video, published on 19 May 2020 on Facebook page The HighWire, features an interview between Del Bigtree and Dolores Cahill, a professor at University College Dublin who specializes in proteomics and the chairperson of the Irish Freedom
Truth or Fiction?→ Obamagate, Explained
Chances are you saw at least a passing reference to “Obamagate” in May 2020, and chances are similar you (like many) struggled to understand what “Obamagate” might actually be. We’ll do our best to break it down. WhatR
Snopes→ Were NY Nursing Homes Full of COVID-19 Patients While Hospital Ship Sat Empty?
Bureaucratic hurdles appeared to have prevented a hospital ship in New York City from being fully used.
Snopes→ Disney, SeaWorld Announce Plans for Florida Parks to Reopen
Disney plans a tiered reopening, with Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom opening on July 11 and the other parks in later in July. SeaWorld plans to open to the public on June 11.
Snopes→ U.S. on Cusp of Marking at Least 100K Deaths from Coronavirus
The stark reality comes as only half of Americans said they would be willing to get vaccinated if scientists are successful in developing a vaccine, according to a new poll released Wednesday from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Res
Snopes→ Did Calif. Announce It Will Pay Undocumented Residents COVID-19 Stimulus While Laying Off First Responders?
A meme linked two separate events together to foment political controversy.
Snopes→ Poll: Half of Americans Would Get a COVID-19 Vaccine
The poll, released Wednesday, found 31% simply weren’t sure if they’d get vaccinated.