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33719 | Drugged travelers awaken in ice-filled bathtubs only to discover one of their kidneys has been harvested by organ thieves. | The legend of unwary travellers drugged and used as unwilling kidney donors by bands of organ thieves. | false | Horrors, Grave Robbery, organ theft | Late January 1997 saw the e-mailed warning “Travellers Beware! !” take the Internet by storm. The story went that a well-financed, highly organized gang operating in various major U.S. cities was drugging business travelers and making off with their kidneys to sell on the organ transplant black market. Very scary stuff... |
15674 | "$29 is what ""families on SNAP (i.e. food stamps) have to live on for a week." | "Paltrow pointed to $29 worth of groceries as what ""families on SNAP (i.e. food stamps) have to live on for a week."" It’s clear Paltrow is trying to do a good thing. But her specific claim falls short. SNAP is not intended to feed families by itself. It is designed to help people with low incomes meet a government-ap... | false | Federal Budget, PunditFact, Gwyneth Paltrow, | "Love or loathe Gwyneth Paltrow, her experiment buying groceries on a food stamp budget stirred up a lot of awareness about the nation’s anti-hunger programs. Which, you know, was kind of the point. Paltrow, a health-conscious actress who prefers to cook with fresh ingredients, accepted a challenge from celebrity chef ... |
10812 | Platelet rich plasma therapy | "This story, about what’s called ""platelet rich plasma therapy"" for unspecified forms of knee pain, came up short on almost all of our criteria. It failed to emphasize the very preliminary nature of the research, while linking the approach to the estimate that ""every year Americans make 15 million visits to doctors ... | false | "No mention of costs, nor any projection of possible future clinical costs. If such a preliminary experimental approach is ready for primetime TV, then it should be ready for even a preliminary discussion of what this approach will cost. The story uses only an elite athlete’s impressive recovery time as an example, yet... | |
31866 | The government of Thailand issued a warning about canned food contaminated with HIV. | The earliest versions of these rumors appeared at the height of the AIDS crisis, voicing fears that anyone could contract the devastating virus even if they didn’t exhibit any known risk factors for HIV exposure. The warnings served both as a talisman offering protection against unwitting exposure as well as an express... | false | Uncategorized, canned food, HIV, hiv in food | In late 2016 a rumor claimed the government of Thailand had issued a warning about canned foods that had purportedly been contaminated with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The above-reproduced examples circulated both on Facebook as well as person-to-person platforms such as Viber, asserting that 200 people had... |
32546 | Monsanto has purchased or merged with the Whole Foods Market grocery chain. | Rumor No. 3: Whole Foods Market recently decided to start selling food with GMOs. Wrong again! As long as GMO crops have been in this country, GMOs have been in the US food supply. The most effective action we can take now is to label the food that DOESN’T include GMOs. That’s why we’ve enrolled our 365 Everyday Value ... | false | Business, Corporate Alliances, food democracy now, gmos | In July 2016, a rumor began circulating on social media claiming that the agribusiness giant Monsanto corporation had purchased or merged with Whole Foods Market organic grocery chain Claims of that nature were not new in mid-2016, but blog posts published then reinvigorated social media rumors about a purchase or mer... |
14283 | You’re in more trouble if you leave your pet in the car than if you leave your child in the car. | "Sen. Pagliarini says ""You’re in more trouble if you leave your pet in the car than if you leave your child in the car."" We looked at the laws, and at face value, he’s right. But, through the power of the DCYF, police, hospital staff and child neglect statutes like Brendan’s Law, parents or caregivers can get in a he... | mixture | Rhode Island, Children, Criminal Justice, Public Safety, John Pagliarini, | "There are two unattended vehicles in a Rhode Island parking lot on a hot summer day. One has a child inside, and the other, an animal. Police are called. In the case of the pet, police or animal control can take ""all steps that are reasonably necessary to remove an animal from a motor vehicle"" if the animal is at ri... |
4594 | Macron vs. Salvini: Two leaders face off over EU’s future. | France’s pro-EU president and the leader of Italy’s euroskeptic, far-right movement jockeyed for the role of chief powerbroker on the continent Monday after elections to the European Parliament hollowed out the traditional political middle. | true | European Union, AP Top News, Italy, International News, European Parliament, Elections, France, Environment, Germany, Europe | The four days of balloting that drew to a close Sunday across the European Union’s 28 countries ended the domination of the main center-right and center-left parties in Parliament and established the anti-EU forces on the right and the environmentalists on the left as forces to be reckoned with. Voters delivered the hi... |
18806 | "Rob Portman Says out-of-state abortion clinics ""have marketed their services to minors"" in states with parental consent laws." | Sen. Rob Portman says abortion clinics market their services to minors in states with stricter laws | true | Abortion, Ohio, Rob Portman, | "Ohio and most other states require a parent’s consent or notification before they will allow a minor to have an abortion. Minors can get around this if they get a court order, or what’s known as ""judicial bypass."" But minors have another option -- one that abortion opponents consider dastardly but that abortion righ... |
33900 | Former Monty Python member John Cleese penned a satirical piece announcing the revocation of America's independence for failure to elect a competent president. | Former Monty Python member John Cleese did not pen a satirical piece announcing the revocation of America's independence for failure to elect a competent president. | false | Politics Soapbox, john cleese | Just as most any anonymous piece of cynically humorous satire about American politics and culture ends up eventually being attributed to comedian George Carlin, so the same kind of material gets credited to English comic John Cleese when it evinces a British viewpoint on American affairs. Unlike his fellow Monty Python... |
13514 | One extra year of schooling for girls reduces infant mortality rates among their children by up to 10 percent. | The head of the World Food Programme said that one extra year of schooling for girls reduces the infant mortality rates among their children by up to 10 percent. Broadly speaking, the association between more education of young women and better odds for their offspring is real. But this claim suffers from several flaws... | mixture | Global News Service, Children, Education, Public Health, Women, Ertharin Cousin, | "In development circles, no one quibbles that it’s good to educate girls. There’s plenty of evidence that it helps them and if they become mothers, that it helps their children. The head of the United Nations' World Food Programme Ertharin Cousin was in Armenia on Sept. 5, 2016, to talk about the importance of child nu... |
9505 | ‘Cool’ New Knee Procedure Eases Arthritis Pain Without Surgery | Knees crippled by osteoarthritis sideline millions of Americans. While most folks seeking help are offered such treatments as physical therapy and steroid injections, this story describes another option: using radio frequency to “mute” the nerves in your knee that transmit the pain signals to your brain. The story does... | true | knee osteoarthritis | Costs are indeed addressed. Although the story makes clear that the process relieves pain, it offers little in the way of quantification. According to the one study mentioned, by how much did it help? How was that measured? That is particularly important here, as this procedure appears to reduce—but not necessarily eli... |
335 | California jury awards $29 million to woman with cancer who used J&J talc. | A California jury on Wednesday awarded $29 million to a woman who said that asbestos in Johnson & Johnson’s talcum-powder-based products caused her cancer. | true | Health News | The verdict, in California Superior Court in Oakland, marks the latest defeat for the healthcare conglomerate facing more than 13,000 talc-related lawsuits nationwide. J&J said it would appeal, citing “serious procedural and evidentiary errors” in the course of the trial, saying lawyers for the woman had fundamentally ... |
36307 | Fans contracted herpes from drinking Belle Delphine's bathwater. | Did Fans Contract Herpes from Belle Delphine’s Bathwater? | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | In July 2019 Instagram cosplayer Belle Delphine offered her bathwater for sale, news of which was quickly followed by a rumor that purchasers were afflicted with herpes after drinking it.Prior to that story appearing, Insider reported:Belle Delphine recently gave her 3.9 million Instagram followers the chance to buy he... |
11321 | Cancer Society calls for annual MRIs for women at greatest risk of breast cancer | "This is a classic case where one newspaper's (the Washington Post) original story on a topic was not done justice in a shortened version picked up by another news organization (the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). The article describes new American Cancer Society breast cancer screening guidelines that now recommend that cer... | false | "The shortened St. Louis version of the original Washington Post story mentions only the cost of a single MRI. It didn't discuss whether insurance would cover these tests and it didn't discuss the cost-effectiveness of such a strategy for breast cancer screening. The original Washington Post story touched on all of the... | |
11442 | New Test May Predict Prostate Cancer’s Aggressiveness | "The bottom line is that the value of the new test remains quite uncertain. The study’s sample size was small, the follow-up period appeared relatively short, and the accuracy statistics were difficult to interpret. The story reports on a study in 71 men, but allows another source to throw in unsourced information abou... | false | "There is no discussion of costs for this product. While it is currently not approved for clinical use in the US, the story could have extrapolated from princing in Europe. Would it be expected to double screening costs or inflate them by a factor of 10? The story didn’t provide quantitative data on potential benefit. ... | |
34706 | Restroom hand dryers spread disease by blowing germs and bacteria around. | Sightings: In an episode of the television comedy The Big Bang Theory (“The Griffin Equivalency,” original air date 13 October 2008), Sheldon Cooper rants about the university’s decision to provide hand blowers rather than paper towel dispensers in the facility’s restrooms, stating “Hot air blowers are incubators and... | unproven | Medical, hand dryers, Swine Flu | An e-mailed alert began circulating in October 2009, holding that hot air hand dryers in restrooms were contributing to the spread of a flu virus: Bathroom Hand Dryers..Interesting Info Everyone in the cleaning industry has always been told that hand dryers in restrooms are not sanitary; they spread germs and bacteria ... |
8608 | Too much focus on hospitals in Europe's coronavirus fight - MSF. | More attention needs to be given to COVID-19 patients outside of hospitals where care workers are often poorly-equipped and the sick are dying alone, representatives from Medicins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in Italy and Spain said on Monday. | true | Health News | Infection rates of the respiratory disease are beginning to slow in two of the worst-hit countries which have together accounted for more than 20% of over 1.2 million cases in the global pandemic, according to World Health Organization data. Staff for the medical charity said the slight easing in the case-load was allo... |
8539 | Chile plans 'release certificates' for recovered coronavirus patients. | Chile will start handing out certificates to people who have recovered from the novel coronavirus that will exempt them from adhering to quarantines or other restrictions, the health ministry said on Thursday. | true | Health News | Health Minister Jaime Manalich said he hoped some of the 1,274 people identified as having recovered from COVID-19 - 21% of the total confirmed cases - would be able to help restart the local economy which has been paralysed since the virus was first confirmed in Chile at the start of March and successive lockdowns wer... |
9325 | J&J's Stelara succeeds in chronic bowel disease study | The news story focuses on an announcement from Johnson & Johnson that one of its drugs, Stelara, is effective at treating moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis (UC). The story does make note of potential harms, and points out other treatments on the market to treat the disease. However, the story does not make clear ho... | false | ulcerative colitis | Costs are not addressed. This is problematic given that Stelara is already on the market for use in treating other medical conditions — and it can cost thousands of dollars. The story also doesn’t make clear that patients in the relevant trials received only a single dose (at one of two different dosages) — which is an... |
14127 | "U.S. Dairy Export Council Says a WHO proposal ""portrays milk and dairy products as an obstacle to a healthy start in life." | "The U.S. Dairy Export Council said a WHO proposal ""wrongly portrays milk and dairy products as an obstacle to a healthy start in life."" The proposal clearly is targeting some dairy products, specifically powdered formulations, as ones that work against the benefits that come from maintaining breastfeeding through a ... | false | Global News Service, Agriculture, Children, Public Health, Trade, U.S. Dairy Export Council, | "The milk industry is upset with the World Health Organization, claiming the international group is pushing a set of marketing guidelines that put their products in a bad light. In a letter to President Barack Obama on May 9, 2016, the U.S. Dairy Export Council wrote that a WHO proposal ""portrays milk and dairy produc... |
3929 | California OKs pharmacists to dispense HIV prevention meds. | Pharmacists in California will be able to dispense HIV prevention pills to patients without a doctor’s prescription after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation Monday that supporters say will greatly reduce the spread of infection. | true | Medication, Health, General News, Legislation, California, Gavin Newsom, U.S. News | Advocates of Senate Bill 159 say California is the first state to authorize pre-exposure prophylaxis, also called PrEP, and post-exposure prophylaxis, known as PEP, without prescriptions. California is already considered a leader in AIDS prevention, they say. PrEP is a once-daily pill for HIV-negative people while PEP ... |
1682 | As youth vaping rises, teens cite the allure of tricks. | On a recent morning, Roger Tarazon and several friends gathered a few blocks from their Queens, New York high school. Some smoked traditional cigarettes, but Tarazon and a few others puffed on electronic vaping devices. | true | Health News | “Sometimes I use it to relax,” the 18-year-old senior said of the device. He also uses it to perform tricks with the vapor, blowing smoke rings or creating funnels of smoke that look like miniature tornadoes. “I don’t do it to show off,” he said. “I just do them because I’m bored.” Tarazon’s embrace of such tricks ref... |
6975 | Crash victim’s mother, man who received her son’s heart meet. | Zack Kelly always had a strong heart_and 13 months after the young man died in a horrific car accident, his mother desperately wanted to hear his powerful heart beating inside another person’s body. | true | Health, Fredericksburg, Virginia, Organ transplants, Accidents | That’s why Melanie Kelly brought her pale pink stethoscope to the clubhouse of Lake Wilderness in Spotsylvania County on a Saturday afternoon. LifeNet Health, the Virginia Beach organization that arranged for Zack’s organ transplants, had set up a meeting between her and Tim Bibey, the 52-year-old who got his heart. Th... |
4974 | Cheap combo pill cuts heart, stroke risks, study finds. | A cheap daily pill that combines four drugs cut the risk of heart attacks, strokes and heart failure in a large study, suggesting it could be a good way to help prevent heart problems especially in poor countries. | true | Health, General News, Stroke, Heart attack, Cholesterol, U.S. News, Heart failure | The pills contained two blood pressure drugs, a cholesterol medicine and aspirin. Many people can’t afford or don’t stick with taking so many medicines separately, so doctors think a polypill might help. A previous study testing one in India found it lowered cholesterol and blood pressure. The new study is much larger ... |
16454 | "American Crossroads Says Tom Steyer is a ""California billionaire who stands to profit by blocking Keystone"" and ""is spending big to help"" Bruce Braley." | "American Crossroads said Steyer ""stands to profit by blocking Keystone"" and ""is spending big to help"" Braley’s Senate campaign. At one point, this might have been an accurate ad. Steyer’s former hedge fund, Farallon Capital Management, had significant holdings in a company that owned a pipeline considered a rival ... | false | Environment, National, Campaign Finance, Climate Change, Message Machine 2014, Negative Campaigning, American Crossroads, | "It’s Republican strategist Karl Rove versus billionaire Democratic donor Tom Steyer in Iowa. Rove’s group, American Crossroads, is up with a new ad that claims the Democratic Senate candidate there, Rep. Bruce Braley, is doing the bidding for Steyer by voting against the Keystone XL oil pipeline. ""Now, a California b... |
27466 | A newspaper photograph shows a pregnant, cigarette-smoking woman worrying about the effect of construction noise on her unborn child. | “We don’t allow no smoking in the house at all,” Muse said, emphatically. “Cigarettes are a habit my son will never pick up.” | true | Fauxtography, pregnancy, Signs Of The Times, smoking | In recent years, medical authorities have tried to impress more and more upon pregnant women the importance of being careful about what they ingest (especially in the early states of pregnancy). What’s good for a pregnant mother isn’t necessarily good for the child she carries; substances that an adult woman can tolera... |
11127 | Bran, soy help cut cholesterol | There were no independent perspectives on the research, and information on costs and availability was lacking. The story also failed to make it clear that we’re talking about a surrogate marker of cardiovascular disease–not actual heart attacks. The competing story from the LA Times had some of the same shortcomings, b... | false | CNN,health food claims | Same problems here as with the competing LA Times story: The post doesn’t address how much it will cost to maintain this diet, which includes some pricey soy-based components and expensive fortified margarines. The story tells us how much the diet reduced cholesterol, providing the actual values from the lab report. It... |
15325 | "Since 2009, ""we've cut homelessness (among veterans) by a third." | "Obama said, ""Let’s take something like homelessness among veterans. So we’ve cut that by a third."" According to the most recent, best available data, he’s right. During his tenure, homelessness among veterans has decreased 32.57 percent. However, that number is based on estimates that have an element of uncertainty.... | true | National, Housing, Veterans, Barack Obama, | "Ever since Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump criticized the war record of Vietnam veteran Sen. John McCain on July 20, the treatment of veterans has been a major point of political discussion. President Barack Obama got into the fray in his July 21 interview with Jon Stewart on the Comedy Central program... |
4083 | Alabama investigates 5 cases of lung disease tied to vaping. | The Alabama Department of Public Health says it’s investigating five reports of potentially severe lung disease associated with electronic cigarettes or vaping. | true | Health, General News, Lung disease, Alabama, Public health | The department told news outlets that it’s evaluating the reports and will release information as it becomes available. A department statement says the group is joining other state health departments in requesting information from health care providers on any cases of suspected respiratory illness among patients who va... |
10188 | Hormone oxytocin may help Asperger’s patients | Briefest – by far – of the three stories we reviewed on this same topic, this story oversimplified content to the point of producing errors. The study is a preliminary investigation of the role of oxytocin treatment in autism and was intended to examine the short term effects of the hormone using a standard set of labo... | false | "The story does not speak to the potential costs associated with a hormone treatment potentially for the life of the person with autism or Aspergers syndrome. While the published study itself does not quantify the results clearly, which is understandable for preliminary laboratory research, we give the story an unsatis... | |
28877 | Police are asking meth users to bring in their drugs because they might be contaminated with Ebola. | What's true: A police department posted a humorous message on Facebook warning meth users about potential Ebola contamination. What's false: Methamphetamine supplies have been contaminated with Ebola. | mixture | Uncategorized, ebola, meth | In March 2016, several warnings circulated on Facebook stating that methamphetamine supplies, and the ingredients used to create meth for recreational drug use, could be contaminated with the virus for the deadly disease Ebola. While the most popular version of this Facebook message claimed that the Ebola contamination... |
13431 | "Not one illness has been reported from raw milk in"" Texas ""in more than four years. A total of six illnesses have occurred in the last 20 years." | "Flynn wrote: ""Not one illness has been reported from raw milk in"" Texas ""in more than four years. A total of six illnesses have occurred in the last 20 years."" Government counts suggest raw milk only rarely touched off illnesses in Texas over those decades. However, Flynn presented an incomplete too-low count, fai... | false | Corrections and Updates, Food Safety, Public Health, Texas, Dan Flynn, | "CORRECTION, 12:30 p.m., Sept. 30, 2016: After this fact check posted, Rep. Dan Flynn's office pointed out an error. We'd presented all national illnesses and deaths tied to food by the federal government as being linked to raw milk. We've now amended that sentence below to note only the illnesses and a death connected... |
16990 | "A proposed amendment ""allows a teenager to get a recommendation for medical marijuana without the consent of a parent." | "Don’t Let Florida Go To Pot says ""the amendment allows a teenager to get a recommendation for medical marijuana without the consent of a parent."" The group didn’t offer us any specifics on what it meant. The amendment is actually silent on the issue of minors. The proposal’s framers say they specifically didn’t incl... | mixture | Health Care, Florida, Marijuana, Don't Let Florida Go To Pot, | "Family Feud time! Today’s question: Name something most teenagers cannot do. Vote? Ding! See R-rated movies alone? Ding! Buy beer? Ding! Score some weed without a hitch under Florida’s proposed medical marijuana amendment? BUZZZZ! An anti-marijuana coalition operating the website DontLetFloridaGoToPot.com has claimed ... |
29221 | It's now against the law in California to shower and do laundry on the same day. | What's true: New water conservation legislation in California will mandate water districts and municipalities enact water conservation measures statewide starting in 2022. What's false: The laws do not render it illegal for Californians to do laundry and take showers on the same day. | false | Politics, zerohedge | On 3 June 2018, multiple web sites falsely reported that it is now “against the law” for Californians to shower and do laundry on the same day, thanks to supposedly draconian water conservation legislation signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown. For example, the conspiratorial web site ZeroHedge reported that: Govern... |
10836 | Medtronic tests stent for erectile dysfunction | Even in – or perhaps especially in – a business story, more critical analysis of such very early research is warranted. More context and more background is necessary for investors or for patients to have in order to judge this extremely preliminary report that is framed by the company as “promising.” We have seen how ... | false | Reuters Health | Sure, it’s early in development. But just as surely, some estimate could have been made of what the stent, the surgery, and followup care would cost. If it’s not too early to report on “promising” results after ann initial feasibility study, then it’s not too early to start projecting costs – even in – or perhaps espec... |
18161 | Twenty-four percent of doctors in Virginia currently don’t accept new Medicaid patients because the reimbursement rates are so low. | "Schwartz said, ""24 percent of doctors in Virginia currently don’t accept new Medicaid patients because the reimbursement rates are so low."" The survey Schwartz cites to back his claim did not include primary care providers in hospitals and community clinics -- who very often are the doctors that care for Medicaid pa... | true | Health Care, Medicaid, Virginia, Dave Schwartz, | "During a recent rally on the state capitol grounds, opponents of Medicaid expansion argued it is ridiculous to expand a health care program that they said is fundamentally flawed. Among the speakers was Dave Schwartz, Virginia director for Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group that organized the rally. He sai... |
23039 | Congresswoman Kathy Castor voted to spend $2.6 million to teach prostitutes in China to drink responsibly. | Mike Prendergast mailer says Kathy Castor voted for $2.6 million to teach prostitutes in China to drink responsibly | false | National, Economy, Health Care, Stimulus, Mike Prendergast, | "As attack ads go, the claim in a last-minute mailer (and accompanying radio ad) in a Florida congressional race is certainly an attention-grabber. It features a picture of two martinis behind the text: ""Congresswoman Kathy Castor voted to spend $2.6 million to teach prostitutes in China to drink responsibly."" The ad... |
10311 | Oxygen Therapy May Relieve Cluster Headache Pain | Unfortunately, the HealthDay story on this promising research is essentially the JAMA press release, only shorter. The quotes are taken directly from the press release. No new sources’ perspectives were included in the story. If the reporter read the journal article or even the abstract, there is no evidence of it. Lik... | false | "The story fails to mention costs for either oxygen treatment or the conventional treatment, an injection with sumatriptan. The story outlines the most basic outcomes–that 78 percent of patients receiving oxygen reported relief at 15 minutes, and that pain relief was better than placebo at 30 and 60 minutes. Still, bot... | |
33977 | Former Colorado governor Richard Lamm delivered a speech on the perils of multiculturalism. | Both Governor Lamm and the writer of the e-mail misidentified the author of the book Mexifornia, whose correct name is Victor Davis Hanson: | true | Politics Soapbox, immigration | Richard D. Lamm was a Democrat who served as governor of Colorado for twelve years from 1975 to 1987. In 2005, a third-person account of a speech attributed to him, on the perils of multiculturalism, became a viral item online: A Frightening Analysis We all know Dick Lamm as the former Governor of Colorado. In that co... |
11460 | Curcumin Improves Memory and Mood, New UCLA Study Says | This news release summarizes an 18-month study of 40 healthy adults to determine whether oral curcumin — the active substance in the spice turmeric — has cognitive benefits. While it does provide some details on the study design and results, it is incomplete in several important areas. For example, is a 28% improvement... | false | University news release | There’s no discussion of costs in the news release. A quick google search for Theracurmin capsules reveals that — at the dosages used in the study — a month’s supply would cost somewhere between $75-$100 dollars. The news release mentions these benefits in the 21 subjects who took curcumin: “significant improvements in... |
7993 | Explainer: China's symptom-free coronavirus carriers raise fears of new wave of infections. | The existence of a substantial but unknown number of asymptomatic carriers of coronavirus in China has raised concerns among the public that people could still be spreading COVID-19 without knowing they are sick. | true | Health News | As the virus continues to wreak havoc across the world, China is close to declaring victory and is already easing travel restrictions. The border of Hubei province, epicenter of the virus, opened on Wednesday after a two-month shutdown. But there are concerns that the end of the lockdown will release thousands of infec... |
9778 | Blood Test Might Detect Deadly Pancreatic Cancer in Early Stages | This story is about a study of a new test for pancreatic cancer. It covered a lot of ground in a short space. It included many voices and a lot of good background about pancreatic cancer. It missed some big areas, though, including the potential costs of the tests and treatments for the disease, the quantification of t... | false | pancreatic cancer | There is no mention of costs in this story. No costs for the test. No costs for the downstream treatments and surgeries. If a researcher is going to be quoted as saying a clinical test could be on the market in a year, there should be some mention of costs. The story does not actually quantify the benefits of this scre... |
10284 | New study casts more doubt on drugs Vytorin, Zetia | This was a story reporting on the results of a recent clinical trial in which individuals at elevated risk of heart attack were given either niacin or ezetimbe in addition to the cholesterol lowering medication they were already taking. What the study showed was that the niacin containing drug appeared better at reduci... | mixture | There was no discussion of costs. The story did not do an adequate job of reporting quantitative benefit of treatment. The difference reported was in the size of the plaque in the carotid artery. What does this mean in terms of the health of the individuals studied? The story should have been clear that this is a surro... | |
37496 | An image went viral during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, showing a family with their masked cat in a portrait taken amidst the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. | Spanish Flu 1918 Family Portrait Shows Cat with Face Mask | true | Fact Checks, Viral Content | In early April 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised COVID-19 guidance and advised Americans to wear face masks, reviving interest in a viral photograph — purportedly a family portrait from the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic that showed a family — cat included — in face masks.The image was popular bef... |
10721 | Study finds daily aspirin cuts many cancer risks | This story presents only one view of a study of the effect of daily low-dose aspirin on cancer death rates: over-the-top enthusiasm and a single-minded group of experts. It leads with a suggestion that everyone over 40 should rely on aspirin to reduce their risk of dying from cancer and proceeds to pump up the potentia... | false | Cancer,Reuters Health | Although the story does not discuss costs, the price of aspirin is low and well-known. The story reports only the relative reductions in cancer deaths rates and not the absolute reductions. Relative rates generally appear to magnify the differences. For example the story referred to reductions in cancer death rates of ... |
9249 | Concussion can now be diagnosed with 95 percent specificity | I-Portal® 4D Eye Tracking System. Image: Neuro Kinetics This news release by the University of Miami describes results from a study involving a head-mounted goggle that may diagnose concussions with more accuracy than a physical exam. Called the I-Portal goggle, the device gauges eye movement through video cameras and ... | false | concussion,University of Miami Miller School of Medicine | The news release mentions that researchers made diagnoses by running tests with the I-Portal goggle, which gauges eye movement through video cameras and computers. But there is no discussion on what the costs for a session with the I-Portal goggle may be. This sounds like a new technology, and it would have been helpfu... |
41014 | Tulsa County's first positive Covid-19 case has recovered. This individual has had two negative tests, which is the indicator of recovery. | Correct, this patient has recovered according to official Tulsa County sources. Two negative tests is one of three official indicators of recovery among people with Covid-19 (who showed symptoms). | true | online | Doctors in India have been successful in treating coronavirus with a combination of drugs (Lopinavir, Retonovir, Oseltamivir along with Chlorphenamine) and are going to suggest the same medicine globally. India’s ministry of health has advised that the anti-HIV drugs, Lopinavir and Retonovir, are used in some groups of... |
35280 | "A photograph shows a ""Your Health Is Not More Important Than My Liberties!"" message displayed on an automobile window at a protest calling for the loosening of COVID-19 social-distancing restrictions." | Demonstrators in many different U.S. cities protested that COVID-19 social-distancing restrictions were unnecessary or had continued for too long. | true | Fauxtography, COVID-19 | Over the weekend of April 17-20, 2020, protesters in cities across the U.S. turned out to demonstrate for the loosening of social-distancing restrictions enacted to deal with the COVID-19 coronavirus disease pandemic, holding that that restrictions were unnecessary or had continued for too long. Those protests encompas... |
9073 | Good long-term improvement after 'reverse' shoulder replacement in patients under 60 | This release explains the results of a very small retrospective study that looked at the long-term results of reverse shoulder replacement (RSA) surgery in adults under 60 years old. Previous studies had suggested that such surgeries weren’t recommended for younger adults, but this release claims the new study shows th... | mixture | reverse shoulder replacement surgery,rotator cuff,Wolters Kluwer Health | There is no mention of the cost of this surgical procedure in this news release. A quick search online reveals that such procedures can range in cost from $7,000 to $21,000 while an average cited by a study from Johns Hopkins placed the typical cost at around $10,000. Joint replacement operations are typically expensiv... |
9930 | Deep Brain Stimulation Might Ease Tough-to-Treat Hypertension | This story describes the experience of an individual who had a deep brain stimulation (DBS) device surgically implanted for the treatment of pain following a stroke, and subsequently found that the device had a beneficial effect on his high blood pressure. It’s an interesting finding — no doubt about it — but results f... | mixture | deep brain stimulation,hypertension | The story speculates that DBS might become a treatment for hard-to-control high blood pressure. But it didn’t offer any estimates as to what it might cost to treat patients with this technology. At the very least, the story could have pressed the authors of the case report to discuss the cost of the device and the pric... |
29113 | "A transcript reproduces radio commentator Paul Harvey's essay entitled ""If I Were the Devil." | An essay that postulates what steps the devil might take in order to corrupt human civilization was popularized by radio commentator Paul Harvey. | mixture | Politics Soapbox | If I Were the Devil” is a form of social criticism, an essay that postulates what steps the devil might take in order to corrupt human civilization (and the United States in particular) and lead it down the path of darkness — before delivering the catch that all the steps listed are phenomena that are already taking pl... |
8093 | Australia widens coronavirus testing as death toll rises. | Australia will expand coronavirus testing, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday, as Canberra struggles to contain an outbreak that it said has killed nine people in the country. | true | Health News | After a gradual spread in January, the number of cases in Australia appears to be tracking sharper spikes seen elsewhere, prompting warnings that hospitals could be overwhelmed. As the number of cases topped 2,500, Morrison said Australia will expand testing to include people if they present with fever or an acute resp... |
11410 | Lab-grown mouse sperm could spawn fertility treatments for men | While the story might have been clearer about potential problems and obstacles that may be ahead for turning this laboratory work in mice into something of potential value in humans, it was an interesting story about a novel laboratory outcome. The goals of cancer treatment have broadened beyond simply reducing deaths ... | mixture | animal research,Los Angeles Times | Not applicable. This was a story about a laboratory result and while it did not contain information about costs, discussion about cost would have been premature. The story didn’t explain how often the experiment was done in mice, the rate of success, etc. The story mentioned that additional work assessing safety was ne... |
201 | U.S. judge orders big drug companies to face opioid trial. | A U.S. judge on Tuesday rejected efforts by major drugmakers, pharmacies and distributors to dismiss claims that they caused the nation’s opioid crisis, clearing the way for a scheduled landmark trial even as he pushes for a nationwide settlement. | true | Health News | U.S. District Judge Dan Polster, who oversees roughly 2,000 opioid lawsuits by states, counties and cities, said the plaintiffs can try to prove that drugmakers’ deceptive marketing of the painkillers caused a harmful, massive increase in supply that pharmacies and distributors did not do enough to stop. “A factfinder ... |
10261 | Sleep’s role in weight loss remains a mystery | The story should have connected its own dots. Why tell us that there’s no evidence supporting sleep interventions for weight loss, and then give us a prescription for sleep changes to help us lose weight? Judging the quality of evidence is critical. But the main reason to do it is to assess the quality of healthcare re... | mixture | "Costs are not directly relevant to the dynamics of sleep and weight, nor to the interventions described in the story. Again, there are no interventional trials discussed, only biological studies of hormones, so benefits shouldn’t be relevant. But by passing along Aziz and Vorona’s recommendations, the author claims th... | |
28164 | In a dying act of defiance, Polish dancer and Holocaust victim Franceska Mann shot and killed SS officer Josef Schillinger. | What's true: Multiple accounts document that in October 1943, SS officer Josef Schillinger was shot and killed by a female prisoner believed to be Franceska Mann. What's undetermined: Some details of the event vary or are unconfirmable in the absence of an official record. | true | History | Many social media users have encountered posts about the claim that in May 1945, Auschwitz prisoner Franceska Mann seized the gun of an unnamed Nazi guard and shot him dead as he attempted to lead her to a gas chamber: Mann’s story was most prominently reported in Filip Müller’s 1979 book Eyewitness Auschwitz: Three Y... |
37821 | After images of U.S. President Donald Trump holding up a Bible circulated, a photograph of Adolf Hitler in a similar post was unearthed. | Hitler Holding a Bible, Trump Holding a Bible | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | After United States President Donald Trump controversially posed for photographs at a Washington, DC church while he held up a Bible, the following photograph of Trump juxtaposed with Adolf Hitler in a purportedly similar pose appeared and quickly went viral:We encountered the image primarily in comments sections, typi... |
37399 | "Anyone is authorized to create holy water by the Catholic church in exigent circumstances, and a quantity of holy water can be increased by adding less than half as much ""secular water." | ‘My Favorite Catholic Lore’ Holy Water Facts Meme | false | Fact Checks, Viral Content | On January 15 2020, a Tumblr screenshot featuring purported facts about holy water (“my favorite Catholic lore”) was shared to Imgur with the title “How to get +1 holy damage”:A multi-party Tumblr exchange began with claims from users starfleetacademy and animonaut, who said:“My favorite catholic lore is that anyone ca... |
6381 | UK says ex-spy poisoned with Soviet-developed nerve agent. | The use of Russian-developed nerve agent Novichok to poison ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter makes it “highly likely” that Russia was involved, British Prime Minister Theresa May said Monday. | true | Chemistry, Cold War, Health, Soviet Union, Science Says, Chemical weapons, Treaties, Science, Theresa May, Europe, Russia, International News | Novichok refers to a class of nerve agents developed in the Soviet Union near the end of the Cold War. The agents were ostensibly created in an attempt to avoid the international chemical weapons treaty that had just been signed; any new substances wouldn’t be subject to past treaties. Novichok behaves slightly differe... |
10676 | Breast Cancer Drug Good Later Than Thought | "The story notes that starting a second hormonal therapy, namely, letrozole (brand name Femara), years after stopping tamoxifen is a new finding which may affect current clinical recommendations for adjuvant treatment for post-menopausal women with ER-positive, early-stage breast cancer. Current clinical practice guide... | mixture | "The story does not mention the cost of taking letrolzole for many years after tamoxifen, nor does it mention if this drug is covered by health insurance. The story provides the relative and absolute numbers for the reduction in recurrence; however, the study notes that there is currently only very short-term survivial... | |
11455 | Not exactly what the doctor ordered: Trasylol may be a killer | This short piece (163 words) reports on the publication of a study in JAMA about the potential harms of a drug, Trayslol (aprontin), that is used to control bleeding in patients who have just undergone bypass surgery. This study raises serious concerns about the safety of this drug, however it also may contradict other... | false | "The story does not mention costs of the drug. Because this story is about the risks of the drug, the story should have quantified those risks, and the quantification should have been in context with other available drugs. While the study does note some of the potential harms of using the drug, the unsubstantiated numb... | |
5133 | Massachusetts reports 3rd death linked to vaping. | Massachusetts health officials say a third state resident has died from a vaping-related lung illness. | true | Health, General News, Worcester, Charlie Baker, Massachusetts, Vaping, Public health | The state Department of Public Health announced Wednesday that a man in his 50s from Worcester County died, after telling officials he vaped both nicotine and the marijuana compound THC. Officials say more than 200 suspected cases of vaping-associated lung injury have been reported to the health department since Septem... |
7345 | Minnesota eases restrictions; honors victims of COVID-19. | Minnesota took further steps Friday to turn the dial on easing its restrictions meant to slow the coronavirus pandemic and to honor the victims of COVID-19. | true | Health, General News, Minnesota, Infectious diseases, Pandemics, Virus Outbreak | While restrictions ease, the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise. The Minnesota Department of Health on Friday reported 20 more COVID-19 deaths, raising Minnesota’s death toll to 683, and a new one-day high of 808 confirmed cases, raising the total count to 14,240, which officials say is a big understatement ... |
37527 | Images show the Spanish Army in the process of locking the country down to prevent the spread of coronavirus strain COVID-19. | ‘Spanish Army Locked Down the Country Due to Coronavirus’ Image Set | mixture | Fact Checks, Viral Content | During global responses to a coronavirus pandemic, a March 19 2020 Facebook post “for the ladies” purportedly showed the “Spanish Army” enforcing a country-wide lockdown to prevent the spread of SARS-nCoV-2:Above a gallery of just over a dozen images, poster Joe Campbell wrote a caption (later adding a link to a GoFund... |
35440 | NAIAD director Dr. Anthony Fauci warned in January 2017 that the Trump administration would face a surprise infectious disease outbreak. | During a forum on pandemic preparedness at Georgetown University, Fauci said the Trump administration will not only be challenged by ongoing global health threats such as influenza and HIV, but also a surprise disease outbreak. | true | Politics, COVID-19 | In the spring of 2020, as debate raged over the timeliness and effectiveness of U.S. President Donald Trump’s response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, some critics pointed to an article dating from shortly before Trump’s January 2017 inauguration, in which Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of ... |
7960 | Washington, D.C. needs 3,600 hospital beds for coronavirus peak: mayor. | Washington, D.C. needs an estimated 3,600 hospital beds within the next two weeks as it braces for a coronavirus outbreak, the mayor wrote in a letter to hospitals in the U.S. capital. | true | Health News | The federal district is asking hospitals to consider repurposing unused clinical spaces, cafeterias and meeting rooms and reopening medical office buildings and medical towers to create room for more hospital beds, Mayor Muriel Bowser wrote. The estimated peak for cases in the city is April 15, according to the Institu... |
9234 | Using a patient's own words, machine learning automatically identifies suicidal behavior | A news release from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center touts a new artificial intelligence algorithm that is “up to 93 percent accurate” in classifying people who are suicidal, compared to non-suicidal mentally ill and control patients, at three different hospital emergency rooms in the Midwest. The rele... | false | mental health | No costs are presented. We’re told the algorithm can identify someone who is actually suicidal with “great accuracy.” And it also throws out a few numbers, including that it’s “up to 93 percent accurate” (from a read of the study, this is in a combined group of kids and adults when assessed on speech) and “85 percent a... |
15212 | More Americans have died from guns in the United States since 1968 than on battlefields of all the wars in American history. | "Kristof wrote, ""More Americans have died from guns in the United States since 1968 than on battlefields of all the wars in American history."" Even using a significantly higher estimate for Civil War deaths than we did the last time we fact-checked this claim, the comparison still holds up. The number of gun deaths s... | true | Military, PunditFact, Guns, Nicholas Kristof, | "In a column published shortly after the on-air slayings of two TV journalists in southwestern Virginia, the New York Times’ Nicholas Kristof offered some ""data points"" about the pervasiveness of gun violence in the United States. One of them was: ""More Americans have died from guns in the United States since 1968 t... |
9088 | Sleep deprivation is an effective anti-depressant for nearly half of depressed patients | This release summarizes a meta-analysis of 66 studies on sleep deprivation as a therapy for depression that suggests deprivation had an antidepressant effect roughly half the time. The sleep deprivation varied in length and the precise way it was provided to patients. Partial sleep deprivation, or sleeping for three to... | mixture | anti-depressant,Sleep deprivation,University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine | The release does not mention costs. One may assume there is no cost to sleep deprivation but the release notes that the deprivation in the studies was mostly monitored in inpatient facilities. That has a cost. However, if the intervention is not done in an inpatient facility there would not be a directly attributable c... |
6211 | EPA: Dredging begins at Indiana Harbor Ship Canal. | Dredging of a ship canal in northwest Indiana has begun as environmental regulators continue to study off-site disposal options for highly contaminated sediments, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. | true | Environment, U.S. Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Dredging, Indiana, Canals, Harbors | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contractors began dredging work at the Indiana Harbor Ship Canal in East Chicago on Monday, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported . Removing the 120,000 cubic yards (91,750 cubic meters) of sediment will likely finish in the fall, the Corps said. Sediment containing more than 50 parts per ... |
10605 | Busy lives demand at-home dialysis | This story discusses in-home dialysis, an option for some patients with kidney failure. The article does not provide information on the risks of this form of dialysis, nor does it compare the cost of in-home dialysis with other forms of treatment. Transplantation is not mentioned, though it can be a viable long-term op... | mixture | Mention of cost and that it is not approved by Medicare. No mention if it is approved by managed care. No quantitative estimates at all. Information not balanced. Discounts potential risks. No mention of any clinical evidence that in-home dialysis is superior to dialysis in the clinic. The claim that in-home machines a... | |
36244 | Evangelical activist Franklin Graham was more forgiving of reports of U.S. President Donald Trump's alleged infidelity than he was of past U.S. President Bill Clinton. | China will tighten regulations on the use of plastic film by farmers to boost crop yields, which has become a major source of soil contamination throughout northern and western regions, according to a draft policy document published on Friday. | true | Fact Checks, Politics | The new rules, which have been opened to the public for consultation, will involve the establishment of a comprehensive “management system” covering the production, sale, utilization and recycling of thin plastic film in the countryside. Chinese farmers, mostly in the arid north and west, cover fields with vast amounts... |
3781 | White House urgently ramps up push for drug cost legislation. | The White House is ramping up its push to get a bill through Congress that curbs prescription drug costs, feeling a new urgency as the impeachment investigation advances amid the 2020 election campaign. | true | Prescription drug costs, General News, Legislation, Elections, Impeachments, Election 2020, Prescription drugs, Medicare, Bills, Nancy Pelosi, Donald Trump | The effort has progressed beyond anything seen in years, says President Donald Trump’s top domestic policy adviser. “This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to confront these issues in a nonideological fashion,” adviser Joe Grogan said in a recent session with reporters. “Unfortunately,” Grogan explained, “there are... |
5411 | Wisconsin health mission celebrates 25 years. | Sandy Brekke turns to a famous definition of success when she reflects on the achievements of St. Clare Health Mission in La Crosse on the occasion of its 25th anniversary. | true | La Crosse, Health, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Wisconsin | “To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded,” wrote Bessie Stanley, more than a century ago, words often ascribed to essayist and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. “That’s what embodies this place,” said Brekke, a critical care nurse by profession who has been the mission... |
34181 | A Wisconsin woman involuntarily lost her hair in July 2019 after she used conditioner that had been tampered with by someone at a Walmart store. | Although not definitive, Walmart’s internal investigation into many hours of surveillance footage yielded no evidence of product tampering at its New Richmond store, but it did reveal evidence that cast doubt on Timm and Robinson’s version of events. It is noteworthy that the company has decided not to withdraw any ite... | unproven | Viral Phenomena | In late summer 2019, multiple news accounts reported that a Wisconsin woman had endured a frightening encounter with a supermarket product tamperer who, the articles said, had added hair remover to a bottle of conditioner, causing the woman’s hair to fall out. On Aug. 1, the website Distractify published an article und... |
35720 | "A photograph shows a family and their cat wearing masks during the 1918 ""Spanish flu"" pandemic." | What's true: This is a genuine photograph of a family wearing masks during a flu epidemic, circa 1920. What's undetermined: Whether the cat is wearing a mask, or just has a white face. | unproven | Fauxtography, COVID-19 | In the summer of 2020, as many city and state officials urged citizens to wear masks in order to slow the spread of coronavirus, a photograph supposedly showing a family (and their cat) wearing masks during the 1918 flu epidemic started to circulate on social media: This is a genuine photograph of a family wearing mas... |
8348 | U.S. death toll from coronavirus hits 19, New York declares emergency. | Two more people succumbed to the novel coronavirus in Washington state, officials said on Saturday, bringing the nationwide toll to 19, while the number of confirmed cases in New York rose to 89 and a cruise ship with infected passengers remained stranded outside San Francisco. | true | Health News | More than half of all U.S. states have reported cases of the coronavirus, which originated in China last year and causes the sometimes deadly respiratory illness COVID-19. As the outbreak takes root, daily life has become increasingly disrupted, with concerts and conferences canceled and universities telling students t... |
11314 | Most U.S. women face heart, stroke risk | This story reports on new American Heart Association guidelines to help women lower their risk of cardiovascular disease. But the story story sensationalized the incidence of heart disease and stroke by casting them as something nearly all American women are in danger of. While it is true that heart disease and stroke ... | mixture | "There was no mention of the costs of aspirin, but those costs are common knowledge. Although this story did a comprehensive job of reporting the recommendations presented in the guidelines, it did not quantify the benefits to be obtained from the various means mentioned for lowering cardiovascular disease risk. While... | |
11243 | New ways to plump up those wrinkles | "This story described a product called ArteFill, and said it was “billed as the first permanent filler.” But the story never challenged that claim, and didn’t quantify potential benefits or harms. It said ""known side effects are minimal."" But on the FDA website, it’s easy to see that side effects include: * Lumpin... | mixture | "The story said ""One visit can cost hundreds, even thousands, of dollars."" And it explained that insurance won't cover it. But it didn't explain what is clearly available on the FDA website, that ""In a clinical study most patients needed more than one injection to achieve optimal wrinkle smoothing. The average numbe... | |
1299 | Britain plans for opt-out organ donation scheme to save lives. | Britain plans to increase the number of organ donors by changing the rules of consent and presuming that people have agreed to transplants unless they have specifically opted out. | true | Health News | Legislation to introduce the new framework for organ and tissue donation will be debated in parliament later this year, with the system expected to come into effect in spring 2020, the health department said on Sunday. “We believe that by making these changes, we can save as many as 700 more lives every year,” Jackie D... |
34016 | Drug-laced suckers are being handed out to children in Arkansas. | What's true: Law enforcement has found lollipops that contain drugs. What's false: Someone is handing out drug-laced suckers to school children. | mixture | Horrors, Drug Horrors | In mid-October 2004 this warning came to our inbox scant weeks before Halloween: North Little Rock Police Department put out a warning. Someone is giving middle school & high school kids suckers that look like: Maple Leafs; Pumpkins & Santa Claus that are laced with three different TYPES OF VERY STRONG DRUGS THAT ARE ... |
9258 | Measuring new hormone may reduce teenagers wrongly diagnosed with PCOS | The release focuses on a study that found elevated levels of the hormone irisin in healthy teenage girls who have been diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). While the release stresses that these findings are preliminary, and need to be confirmed through additional research, it suggests that testing irisin le... | mixture | European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology,polycystic ovary syndrome | The release doesn’t address costs at all. Given how far this is removed from widespread clinical applications, that’s somewhat understandable. Then again, if a clinical application is so far away, it’s hard to understand why one would claim in the headline that this test “may reduce teenagers wrongly diagnosed with PCO... |
9447 | FDA approves better vaccine against painful shingles virus | This breaking news coverage of the FDA’s approval of a new shingles vaccine, GlaxoSmithKline’s Shingrix, does a good job of comparing the vaccine’s costs and benefits to those of an established competitor, Merck’s Zostavax. However, the story lacks perspective from independent experts. Also, it doesn’t report more mean... | mixture | FDA,shingles,vaccines | The story does a good job here: GlaxoSmithKline PLC said the price of its shingles vaccine, called Shingrix, will be $280 for the required two shots. Merck & Co.’s one-shot Zostavax costs $223. Most insurance plans cover it. A couple of caveats aren’t addressed. For one, it’s unclear to what extent insurers will cover ... |
8887 | US FDA Says Contaminant in Some Baxter Heparin. | U.S. regulators on Wednesday said they identified a contaminant in the key ingredient in Baxter International’s (BAX.N) recalled blood thinning drug heparin amid 15 more reports of deaths in patients treated with some version of the drug. | true | Health News | The contaminant, a large complex molecule chemically similar to heparin, was detected in samples from a Chinese and a U.S. plant, both owned by Baxter’s supplier, Wisconsin-based Scientific Protein Laboratories LLC (SPL). “At this point we don’t know how the heparin-like compound got into the active pharmaceutical ingr... |
29347 | A British mother lost custody of her children because she ignored warnings about 'co-sleeping' with her children. | Transparency Project chair Lucy Reed told us by email that her organization is “concerned that inaccurate or skewed reporting of the circumstances in which children are removed in child protection cases may directly impact on the way other parents engage with child protections services, and may make it more difficult f... | false | Legal Affairs, Judge Peter Greene, the telegraph, The Transparency Project | In February 2017 dubious web sites reported that a British couple lost custody of their children for “co-sleeping” — with those sites downplaying the real mistreatment that led to the judge’s decision against the parents. The story involved a child welfare custody hearing. The judge in the case, Peter Greene, ruled tha... |
14293 | I remain one of the poorer members of the United States Senate. | South Korea’s top convenience store chain suspended the sale of flavored liquid e-cigarettes made by U.S. company Juul Labs on Thursday, a day after the government warned the public to stop using such products citing fatalities in the United States. | true | National, Candidate Biography, Bernie Sanders, | The GS25 chain halted sales of three of Juul Labs’ products including “tropical” - the equivalent of mango in the United States - and one made by South Korean company KT&G, store parent company GS Retail said. The firm would consider dropping all liquid e-vaping products if an ongoing government investigation found the... |
36086 | Cream of tartar and orange juice are effective ways to reduce or stop nicotine cravings and aids attempts to quit smoking. | Cream of Tartar and Orange Juice to Quit Smoking? | unproven | Disinformation, Fact Checks | In October 2019, a post circulated on Facebook advising smokers to use potassium bitartrate — commonly known as cream of tartar — along with orange juice as an effective and inexpensive way to quit smoking successfully.Alongside a blurry image of a jar of cream of tartar, the original poster enthused that the purported... |
26758 | Facebook post Says President Barack Obama “waited six months to call swine flu an emergency after thousands died.” | The Obama administration declared swine flu, or H1N1, a public health emergency six weeks before H1N1 was declared a pandemic. No H1N1 deaths had yet been recorded in the United States. Six months after that initial declaration, when more than 1,000 deaths had occurred, Obama himself declared H1N1 a national emergency. | false | Public Health, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts, | "President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus is being defended with an attack on how President Barack Obama handled the outbreak of H1N1, also known as swine flu, in 2009. The headline of an article shared on Facebook made this claim: ""Flashback: Obama waited six months to call swine flu an emergency after th... |
28686 | Cavities are contagious, primarily between intimate partners or children and caregivers. | What's true: Some research indicates that specific bacteria linked with aggressive early childhood cavities may be transmitted between caregivers and small children; at least one small study involving four couples had similar findings. What's false: The transmissibility of cavities seemed restricted only to specific ba... | mixture | Medical, cavities, contagious, kissing | On 20 February 2016, ScienceDaily shared a University of Louisville press release titled “Cavities are contagious, research shows,” which said (without a link to any particular research): Dental caries, commonly known as tooth decay, is the single most common chronic childhood disease. In fact, it is an infectious dise... |
3849 | Maine governor praises federal plan for prescription drugs. | Maine is ready to take advantage of a Trump administration proposal that would allow Americans to legally and safely import lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada, Democratic Gov. Janet Mills said Wednesday. | true | Global trade, Medication, Health, General News, Prescription drugs, Canada, Maine | The plan reverses years of opposition from federal health authorities. It comes amid a public outcry over high prices for life-sustaining medications. It’s unclear how soon consumers will see benefits. Last month, Maine passed a bill to allow for the wholesale importation of prescription drugs from Canada. Such a plan ... |
35856 | U.S. President Donald Trump tried to deflect attention from his response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic by repeatedly comparing it to President Barack Obama's handling of the H1N1 pandemic. | Laboratory tests for H1N1 available in 2009 could take up to a week to produce a diagnostic and were only recommended for individuals who were hospitalized with the suspected flu, pregnant, or had weakened immune systems. | true | Politics, 2020 election, COVID-19 | For much of 2020, U.S. President Donald Trump tried to shift the spotlight on his response to the COVID-19 pandemic by criticizing former President Barack Obama’s handling of the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, which Trump claimed resulted in the deaths of as many as 17,000 people. Also known as the “Swine Flu,” the nove... |
34777 | "Johnson & Johnson ""admitted"" that their brand baby products contain formaldehyde, which is a known carcinogen." | What's true: In January 2014, Johnson & Johnson products announced the completion of a reformulation to remove formaldehyde from their baby products due to consumer fears. What's false: The level of formaldehyde contained in products such as baby shampoo has not been proved to pose a cancer danger to humans. | mixture | Politics | On 14 August 2015, the blog Healthy Food House published an article titled “Johnson & Johnson Admits: Our Baby Products Contain Cancer-Causing Formaldehyde,” whose text proclaimed: Although [Johnson & Johnson] claims that the amount of formaldehyde isn’t large enough to be detrimental to humans — even infant humans — t... |
10942 | Experimental drug could replace burdensome anti-stroke treatment warfarin | Cost information is discussed inadequately, incompletely or not at all in 70% of the stories we review. It is an interesting paradox that this story didn’t provide an estimate of how much consumers will have to pay for the drug, but it did estimate the size of the market for such drugs. Indeed, we identified the cost o... | true | Los Angeles Times,Stroke | It is an interesting paradox that the story didn’t provide an estimate of how much consumers will have to pay for the drug, but it did estimate the size of the market for such drugs. Indeed, we identified the cost of rivaroxaban to consumers in Canada within seconds and wonder why this important consideration was not i... |
32416 | Hillary Clinton said in a speech that Christians in America must deny their faith in Christianity. | A Hillary Clinton speech on improving the plight of women and girls worldwide has been cited as a demand that American Christians deny their faith | false | Politics, hillary clinton | On 23 April 2015, Hillary Clinton delivered the keynote address at the annual Women in the World Summit in New York City. In a 20-minute speech that touched on the triumphs and challenges of improving the plight of women and girls worldwide, Clinton emphasized the work yet to be done: Yes, we’ve nearly closed the globa... |
10722 | More signs lung cancer screening could save lives | We were on high alert when reviewing this story about CT screening and lung cancer deaths, because of questions about the methods used in the study and the advocacy history of the lead researcher. The headline, lead sentence and concluding section… the most important sections of the story… tilt toward meek acceptance o... | true | Cancer,Reuters Health,Screening | The story reports that this sort of scan costs about $300. The story also notes that if screening is effective, the scans would need to be repeated, though there is no consensus on what schedule would make the most sense. The CDC estimates that more than 45 million Americans currently smoke cigarettes and more than tha... |
5799 | Telehealth gives rural Missouri more access to health care. | With a population just shy of 5,000, the town of St. Robert lies just south of the heart of Missouri. It’s one of the many rural towns in the state that finds alternatives to health care access through the internet. | true | Access to health care, Technology, Health, Missouri, Internet access | Since the early 1990s, the telehealth network has helped connect patients to health care providers from their own homes. Increasing technology has made the service more efficient, with live audio and video sessions enhancing virtual health care. The Columbia Missourian reports that telehealth services rely on internet ... |
8654 | Retired doctors, medics abroad answer coronavirus calls. | On a St. Patrick’s Day like no other last month, Irish Health Minister Simon Harris launched a recruitment drive to tackle the coronavirus outbreak with a stark message: “Your country needs you.” | true | Health News | Nine days later, David Quigley arrived home to Dublin from Perth, Australia alongside 100 other young Irish doctors who cut short their training abroad to answer Harris’ call to help slow the spread that has infected more than 3,000 people in Ireland. Quigley, a 30-year-old respiratory specialist, was due to return to ... |
7426 | Trump vs Fauci: President’s gut sense collides with science. | In a clash of gut instinct versus science, President Donald Trump and the government’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, are politely but publicly sparing over whether a malaria drug would work to treat people with coronavirus disease. | true | AP Top News, Malaria, Health, Anthony Fauci, General News, Politics, Infectious diseases, Science, Virus Outbreak, Donald Trump | Trump is clinging to his feeling that a malaria drug widely available could be the answer-in-waiting to an outbreak spreading around the nation, shutting down major parts of the economy, and posing the biggest challenge he has faced as president. Calmly and quietly, Fauci insists that the science is not yet there to va... |
26357 | Models projecting COVID-19 deaths “are talking about without mitigation.” | A University of Washington model predicts 134,000 deaths by early August. That model takes into account mitigation. | false | Coronavirus, Donald Trump, | "President Donald Trump downplayed academic projections that COVID-19 deaths could rise higher than previously expected this summer. Trump was asked about new projections multiple times on May 5, the day he traveled to Arizona to tour a mask factory. ABC’s David Muir asked Trump about a model by Johns Hopkins Universit... |
1653 | Michelle Obama makes salad in Milan in home-cooking campaign. | First lady Michelle Obama chopped parsley and pine nuts for a salad with 20 school children in Milan on Wednesday to spread her message: Make more home-cooked meals, and you will be healthier. | true | Health News | Flanked by American celebrity chefs John Besh and Mario Batali, Obama showed students from the American School of Milan how to cook, as part of her “Let’s Move” initiative aimed at boosting nutrition and combating obesity among children. Obama is due to visit Milan’s nutrition-themed Expo 2015 world’s fair on Thursday,... |
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