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Pension funds and insurers pledge climate action at U.N. summit.
Insurers and pension funds managing $2.3 trillion pledged on Monday to shift their portfolios away from carbon-heavy industries in the hope of triggering snowballing climate commitments from other big investors.
true
Environment
German insurer Allianz, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), and Swedish pension fund Alecta were among the founders of the new “Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance” launched at a United Nations climate summit. “Mitigating climate change is the challenge of our lifetime. Politics, business and societ...
8336
Amazon testing disinfectant fog at New York warehouse after coronavirus protests.
Amazon.com Inc is testing the use of disinfectant fog at a warehouse in Staten Island, New York starting on Tuesday, the company told Reuters, following worker protests over the risk of coronavirus infection at the site.
true
Health News
The measure shows how the world’s largest online retailer is aiming to increase safety cleaning without closing facilities essential to its operation, as some workers and elected officials have demanded. Amazon said it is trying out disinfectant fog as used by airlines and hospitals to further sanitize its facilities. ...
9013
New class of drugs could help tackle treatment-resistant cancers
This news release touts a “new class of drug” that is being tested to treat cancers that are resistant to other therapies. The news release says the initial research was funded by the charity Cancer Research UK and the drug was licensed to Irish biotechnology firm Carrick Therapeutics, which is has begun conducting a s...
false
Imperial College London,treatment-resistant cancers
There’s no discussion of costs here, either of initial research funded by the charity Cancer Research UK or of the potential cost to patients and payers if this drug ever goes on the market. While an exact price isn’t something we’d expect, the news release could have described the financial arrangement under which Car...
12000
A California health care CEO is promising to reduce our prescription drug costs.
"An ad against Ohio’s Issue 2 ballot initiative said, ""A California health care CEO is promising to reduce our prescription drug costs."" Weinstein is the president and co-founder of AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a nonprofit funding Issue 2, but the articles cited by the campaign referred to Weinstein as a CEO either in...
false
Ohio, Drugs, Health Care, Ohioans Against Deceptive Rx Ballot Issue,
"A TV advertisement opposing Ohio’s Issue 2 ballot initiative to lower drug costs portrayed the initiative as a ploy by the health care industry to hike up costs. ""Over the next few months, you’re going to hear a lot about the November ballot issue on prescription drugs,"" the May 23, 2017, video says. ""A California ...
11017
New prenatal tests provide clearer answers sooner
This story discusses first trimester screening for prenatal chromosomal abnormalities, namely Down syndrome. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) looked at sequential screening of women 10-13 weeks into their pregnancy, instead of the typical 16 week screening. Combining blood tests and ultrasound scre...
true
No information about the cost of the screening or diagnostic tests, either alone or in combination. No information if both forms of testing in first trimester are covered by insurance. Not much quantitative data presented. Mentions harms of miscarriage with the CVS testing and amniocentesis. Briefly mentions psychologi...
2479
Plane crashes offer hospitals marketing opportunities, pitfalls.
For Bay Area hospitals, responding to the crash landing of Asiana Flight 214 could have a legacy that lasts well beyond the days they treated victims: raising their profile in the community, perhaps leading to more people thinking of their hospital when they need care.
true
Health News
Bay Area hospitals took in more than 180 injured passengers after the plane came in too low to the airport on July 6, hitting a sea wall and losing its tail and landing gear as it skidded down the runway. The bulk of patients went to San Francisco General Hospital and Stanford Hospital & Clinics. Hospitals say, however...
8561
Australia promises aid to coronavirus-alert Pacific as cyclone tears through.
Australia said on Thursday it stood ready to help nearby Pacific Island nations in the aftermath of a powerful cyclone that has cut a path through a region already under restricted movement to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
true
Environment
Cyclone Harold, a category 5 storm packing winds in excess of 251 km/h, hit Tonga early on Thursday, cutting power and destroying popular holiday resorts. Tonga Police posted images of flattened beachfront resort buildings on its official Twitter page. The storm has already passed through Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon ...
41811
A lot of the wall is built. It’s been very effective. ... El Paso, illegal traffic dropped 72 percent, then ultimately 95 percent, once the wall was up.
In a contentious Oval Office meeting, President Donald Trump and the Democratic congressional leaders — Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer — disagreed over funding for a border wall, mangling some facts in the process.
mixture
border wall, government shutdown, jobs,
In a contentious Oval Office meeting, President Donald Trump and the Democratic congressional leaders — Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer — disagreed over funding for a border wall, mangling some facts in the process.The on-camera Dec. 11 meeting was held 10 days before a deadline for Congress to pass, and the president t...
38860
Forwarded emails have cited a letter from a Special Olympics athlete named John Franklin Stephens to Ann Coulter after she used the “R” word on Twitter.
John Franklin Stephens’ Letter to Ann Coulter-Authorship Confirmed!
true
Miscellaneous
This one is true. John Franklin Stephens wrote an open letter to Anne Coulter after she called President Obama a “retard” on Twitter during the 2012 presidential election. The controversy started when Ann Coulter tweeted, “I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard,” during the presidenti...
9001
For women with history of pregnancy loss, walking may aid chance of becoming pregnant
This release summarizes a study that examined the impact of physical activity on a very narrow subgroup of women: those who have had 1-2 miscarriages and hope to become pregnant. The findings suggest that vigorous activity in these women — and walking over 10 minutes at a time in those who were overweight — increases t...
mixture
pregnancy,University of Massachusetts at Amherst,walking
The news release states: Walking has great potential as a lifestyle change because of its low cost and availability Fair enough. The news release mentions two benefits of physical activity with regards to “fecundability” (the ability to become pregnant): So the study put into context the amount of physical activity ass...
7214
Eyes on Russia probe leaves Washington’s to-do list undone.
You’ve probably heard all about what’s happening in Washington. This is a story about what isn’t.
true
AP Top News, Monica Lewinsky, Rich Galen, Health care reform, Politics, North America, Newt Gingrich, Bill Clinton, Russia
The rapid-fire revelations about the Trump campaign and its Russia connections that are heating up this city are having a chilling effect in plenty of other ways. There are bills that have been pushed to the back burner. Diplomatic initiatives that aren’t fully initiating. Interest groups that can’t stir up much intere...
10390
An NBC Reporter Investigates His Own Cancer
This was a story about NBC reporter George Lewis’ diagnosis and treatment for prostate cancer. First we want to extend our best wishes to Mr. Lewis for successful treatment and for good health. But the principles of sound journalism are not suspended just because a reporter is reporting on his own illness. This story v...
false
The story included no mention of the cost of proton therapy – which is an important issue. A single patient’s treatment may be more than $50,000. There was no attempt to quantify the benefits of proton beam therapy. No harms were discussed for either the proton beam therapy or for the broad PSA testing recommendation t...
9906
Group recommends Down syndrome testing
"The story notes new screening guidelines and methods of detecting Down syndrome and other chromosomal abnormalities earlier in pregnancy. The story explains why pregnant women of any age may wish to be screened. The story does not provide enough information on the downside or risks of these earlier methods of screenin...
false
"The story does not mention the cost of the early screening or multiple screenings. The story also does not mention if health insurance covers the cost of the newer methods of screening for Down syndrome. The story  only mentions that women will know earlier if her fetus shows signs of Down syndrome. The story does not...
9456
FDA OKs continuous blood sugar monitor without finger pricks
This Associated Press story describes a newly FDA-approved device — a continuous glucose monitor that does not require any blood testing. The story does a great job describing the convenience and the potential for better blood sugar monitoring, and therefore, better regulation of insulin levels in people with diabetes....
mixture
diabetes
The story does not put a number to the cost of the two-part device, saying the device-maker is not yet disclosing that info. The benefits of the new continuous blood sugar monitor are not quantified in any way. At the very least, we’d like to know how accurate the sensor is compared to the current method of blood testi...
26352
Media outlets reported that the same boy died 3 times from the coronavirus, in 3 countries.
The photo in the post is of Vitor Rafael Bastos Godinho, a 14-year-old Portuguese boy who died after testing positive for the novel coronavirus. He is correctly identified in all the stories that use the image.
false
Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts,
"Amid a pandemic that is believed to affect elderly people most severely, the deaths of several young people from COVID-19 around the world have drawn special attention — and generated misinformation. A post on Facebook falsely claims that different media outlets misused a boy’s image to report that he died from the co...
39172
Wheat is toxic because farmers routinely apply Roundup to crops days before harvest to dry down or kill the plants.  
The Real Reason Wheat is Toxic
unproven
Food / Drink
The theory that Roundup makes wheat toxic is yet another unproven attempt to explain why more and more people are suffering from wheat intolerance. The eRumor first appeared in a blog published by the Healthy Home Economist in November 2014. The post claims that farmers who treat crops with Roundup days bef...
9513
How Your Morning Coffee Might Slow Down Aging
The story focuses on a recent journal article in Nature Medicine, which identified specific genes and gene modules (or groups of genes) associated with inflammation in older adults. The story notes that inflammation is associated with a number of health problems. However, the story focuses on an aspect of the research ...
false
coffee,inflammation
The story doesn’t address cost. However, the story focuses almost exclusively on coffee consumption — and most readers can be assumed to be familiar with the cost of coffee. We’ll rate this as not applicable. The story provides no numbers that would help readers grasp the size of the benefit offered by coffee. Instead,...
6150
Grant will help promote health benefits of maple syrup.
Everyone knows that maple syrup is delicious, but not everyone knows it has potential health benefits too.
true
Rhode Island, Science, University of Rhode Island
A team of University of Rhode Island scientists is hoping to change that with a nearly $500,000 federal grant they’ll use to promote the maple industry, stressing the sustainability and market value of the crop and its potential health benefits. The initiative, called the Collaborative to Communicate Maple Benefits, wi...
10864
Scientists use synthetic corneas to restore vision
"Unlike the other two stories, this one takes too long to tell readers just how small the study really was. It does not bring in any outside experts to help put the research into context. Nor does it establish the novelty of the treatment, discuss the availability or even mention the potential costs. Because of this mi...
false
"There is no discussion of costs. Again, charitiable organizations who work in this area could have provided some ballpark figures for human corneal transplants. The researchers claim in another story that this option would be cheaper. At a minimum, a dollar figure would have been good context. Like the other two stori...
16310
"Under my platform, ""I will make no changes to the current (Medicare) system for current retirees and anyone approaching retirement."
"Cotton said that under his platform, he ""will make no changes to the current (Medicare) system for current retirees and anyone approaching retirement."" Cotton has consistently supported repeal of Obamacare, and while he has sometimes noted that something needs to be enacted to ""replace"" the law, we couldn’t find a...
false
National, Health Care, Medicare, Retirement, Tom Cotton,
"During a debate in the hotly contested Arkansas Senate race, Republican Tom Cotton and Democratic incumbent Mark Pryor squared off over the question of Medicare and how it would be affected by the Affordable Care Act, the health care law sometimes called Obamacare. A moderator kicked off the exchange by noting that TV...
6716
Predators’ Watson: Alcohol issues led to his arrest.
Nashville Predators forward Austin Watson says the arrest last year that led to his 18-game suspension came when he started drinking again after 23 months of sobriety.
true
Health, NHL, Nashville, Alcoholism, Nashville Predators, Arrests, Sports, Hockey, Austin Watson
Watson, who turns 27 on Sunday, said Friday in an Instagram post that he’s been dealing with anxiety, depression and alcoholism since the age of 18. Watson said he voluntarily entered the NHL’s substance abuse program after his June 16 arrest. “I am currently sober and committed to living a healthy lifestyle so that I ...
8763
Clones' offspring may be in food supply: FDA.
Food and milk from the offspring of cloned animals may have entered the U.S. food supply, the U.S. government said on Tuesday, but it would be impossible to know because there is no difference between cloned and conventional products.
true
Science News
Gloria, the first calf born to a cloned cow, Vitoria (L), is seen on a government farm outside Brasilia in this October 4, 2004 file photo. REUTERS/Jamil Bittar/Files The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in January meat and milk from cloned cattle, swine and goats and their offspring were as safe as products from...
26460
NC liquor stores were deemed essential “because we have a lot of people who are chemically dependent on alcohol and if we suddenly cut off their access they would go into withdrawal and flood the emergency rooms.”
"Liquor stores in North Carolina, known as ABC stores, are considered essential businesses during the coronavirus lockdown. A Democratic state Senator said the stores are essential because some people are dependant on alcohol and, if they don't get it, they'll go into withdrawal and ""flood"" emergency rooms. Neither G...
false
Alcohol, North Carolina, Coronavirus, Jeff Jackson,
"To limit the spread of coronavirus, authorities are asking some businesses to close and allowing some to stay open. That’s the case in North Carolina, where Gov. Roy Cooper has issued a stay-at-home order and deemed some businesses ""essential."" Gas stations, grocery stores and home supply stores like Home Depot are ...
24718
"In the 1970s, ""the swine flu broke out . . . under another Democrat, President Jimmy Carter."
Michele Bachmann wrong that swine flu broke out under Carter
false
National, Health Care, Michele Bachmann,
"Michele Bachmann, a Republican member of Congress from Minnesota, is known for her controversial remarks. During the fall of 2008, she nearly lost her re-election campaign because she said Barack Obama ""may have anti-American views."" In a 2009 radio interview, she said incorrectly that six Muslim clerics who were re...
34711
It takes a greater number of facial muscles to frown than it does to smile.
Smiling makes us feel happier. It is not a cure-all for every situation (that is, don’t look to it to remedy overwhelming grief), but in terms of getting us past a small dose of the blues, it can help to lift the sense of sadness being experienced.
unproven
Uncategorized, frown, muscles, smile
Some sayings have been with us so long that their origins are now wholly forgotten. This popular aphorism about a greater number of facial muscles being needed to produce a frown than are required to generate a smile is one such snippet of homespun wisdom; it has been a part of our cultural landscape for so long that n...
28862
"The man leading opposition to a controversial ""bathroom bill"" in North Carolina is a registered sex offender."
"What's true: Charlotte businessman Chad Sevearance was convicted of sexual contact with minors in 1998 and supported Charlotte's anti-discrimination ordinance. What's false: Sevearance was not the ""leader"" of efforts in Charlotte or North Carolina regarding bathroom-related ordinances."
mixture
Politics, bathroom bill, bathroom controversies, breitbart
In late February 2016, social media users began sharing links and memes affirming that the leader of opposition to a North Carolina bathroom ordinance was a registered sex offender: Sex offender pushes Trans bathroom ordinance that has now passed in Charlotte, NC https://t.co/AT6nvKNHJ1 @BadhbhCatha @Stella_Morabito — ...
10809
Cancer drug may elude many women who need it
"This is a story about two presentations at the The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting about evidence questioning the accuracy of tumor testing to determine which women qualify for treatment with trastuzumab (trade name Herceptin). Tumor profiling has been hailed as a new era in individualized cancer ...
mixture
"The story only says that Herceptin is ""expensive"" but it doesn’t give cost estimates for the drug (about $20,000 per year) nor for the HER2 receptor testing. The story mentions that Herceptin could reduce the risk of recurrence by half. The story does not mention the benefit of re-testing women previously thought to...
1304
Prince Harry, Elton John to launch coalition against HIV in men.
Britain’s Prince Harry and music star Elton John are joining forces to launch a “global coalition” focused on treating HIV infections in men, the singer’s AIDS charity said on Thursday.
true
Health News
The Elton John AIDS Foundation did not go into details about the plan - but said all would be revealed at the 2018 International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam on July 24. The 71-year-old singer and 33-year-old prince are both prominent HIV and AIDS campaigners. John sang at the funeral of Harry’s mother, Princess Diana,...
2795
Piglet-killing PED virus spreads to second Canada farm.
The piglet-killing Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv) has spread to a second Canadian farm, government officials said on Monday.
true
Health News
A laboratory test confirmed the virus in a barn near Chatham-Kent, Ontario, and another possible case is under investigation in the same area, said Greg Douglas, the Canadian province’s chief veterinary officer. “We still are under the impression that there are strategies to help mitigate, slow the spread of this virus...
7317
Americans brace for ‘hardest, saddest’ week of their lives.
Americans braced for what the nation’s top doctor warned Sunday would be “the hardest and saddest week” of their lives while Britain assumed the unwelcome mantle of deadliest coronavirus hotspot in Europe after a record 24-hour jump in deaths that surpassed even hard-hit Italy.
true
AP Top News, Religion, Health, Andrew Cuomo, General News, Latin America, Technology, Pandemics, New York, New York City, Asia Pacific, Virus Outbreak, Europe, International News
“This is going to be our Pearl Harbor moment, our 9/11 moment,” U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams told “Fox News Sunday.” New York City, the U.S. epicenter of the pandemic, saw a glimmer of hope, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo saying that daily deaths had dropped slightly, along with intensive care admissions and the number of...
27739
"A billboard that says ""Make America White Again"" is part of a political campaign."
The Ballotpedia web site records that Tyler ran for the same office in 2014 and received 5,579 votes, or 0.4% of the total votes cast.
true
Fauxtography, make america white again, politics, racism
On 22 June 2016, a photograph purportedly showing a billboard for a Congressional candidate named Rick Tyler, bearing the slogan  “Make America White Again” along with pictures of various white American historical figures and a white family was widely circulated via social media: Although the image was also published b...
38487
Elevation Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, has debuted a water slide baptismal.
Many of the people coming to Anna Kukharuk’s private medical clinic don’t have a disease. What plagues them is doubt. But its effects are a health emergency that the doctor and hundreds of others are struggling to remedy.
false
Religious
Deep mistrust of vaccines in Ukraine has allowed measles, a virus which according to United Nations data kills 367 children a day worldwide, to grow into an epidemic infecting more than 58,000 people in the country of 42 million this year alone. That has brought one of the world’s most contagious diseases to Europe - t...
10354
Clip-on device offers protection against mosquitoes that transmit Zika
This news release from the Entomological Society of America promotes a study published in its journal about a mosquito repellent that comes in the midst of a cacophony of news reports about the Zika virus outbreak. The clip-on device consists of a very small fan that blows “a cloud” of insecticide around the wearer. Th...
false
Association/Society news release,Disease mongering,medical devices
The release doesn’t provide any information about the device’s cost. A quick online search found the OFF! Clip-On starter pack going for $9.49 at Target. After the initial purchase, consumers must continue to buy refills and batteries. The monetary impact is huge if you consider the the volume of potential sales. The n...
21416
Michele Bachmann Says the vaccine to prevent HPV can cause mental retardation.
In several national television appearances, Bachmann said a woman reported her child had experienced mental retardation after receiving an HPV vaccination. We can't judge the specifics of that case -- neither the woman nor the daughter have been identified as far as we could find and skeptics have offered a reward if t...
false
National, Health Care, Michele Bachmann,
"After criticizing Texas Gov. Rick Perry for mandating a vaccine for school girls, Rep. Michele Bachmann added some scary charges: She claimed to have just met a woman whose daughter suffered mental retardation from the vaccine, that it has ""very dangerous consequences"" and that it puts ""little children's lives at r...
38941
Viral reports on social media have warned people to look for injection marks on crabs that are imported from China because they may have been injected with a highly toxic preservative called formalin.
China Injects Crabs with Toxic Preservative Formalin
false
Food / Drink
Reports that crabs imported from China have been injected with formalin are false. Formalin can be used as an embalming fluid to preserve animal specimens and tissue samples that are studied under microscopes. It can also be diluted and used as a disinfectant to kill parasites in fish. The FDA has approved three dilute...
4756
Montana agency announces significant part of plant cleanup.
Officials say they have finished a significant part of the cleanup at a former aluminum company in northwest Montana.
true
Environment, Montana, Hazardous waste
The Montana Department of Environmental Quality said Friday that the cleanup of hazardous waste in the area used to reduce alumina as part of the Columbia Falls Aluminum Company’s smelting process has been completed. The Daily Interlake reports that the Montana environmental agency says the step is a small part of the ...
76
Several states wary of $48 billion opioid settlement proposal.
Several U.S. states that have been ravaged by the opioid epidemic are pushing back on a proposed $48 billion settlement framework that would resolve thousands of lawsuits against five drug companies accused of fueling the addiction crisis.
true
Health News
The proposal would bring an end to all opioid litigation against AmerisourceBergen Corp(ABC.N), Cardinal Health Inc(CAH.N) and McKesson Corp(MCK.N), drugmaker Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Inc(TEVA.TA)(TEVA.N), and Johnson & JohnsonJNJ.J. The companies have proposed paying $22.25 billion cash mostly over 18 years, whi...
37979
Circulating video depicts an attempted child abduction at a Florida pizza shop.
Haze shrouded India’s capital city again on Monday, with residents braving dangerous air quality to return to work after a weekend of clearer air and better weather.
mixture
Fact Checks, Viral Content
The air quality index of the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi stood at “hazardous” levels of 497 as of 0630 GMT, with levels of airborne PM 2.5 - particles that can reach deep into the lungs - touching nearly 700 in parts of the city. That is more than 10 times the recommended safe limit of 60 for PM 2.5. A dip in wind speed ...
33087
A video shows Koko the gorilla spontaneously using sign language to issue a warning about climate change.
The Koko climate change PSA is a novel and compelling way of focusing viewer attention on a political message, but it’s basically just a staged commercial, not an expression of sagacity about Nature issued by a non-human creature.
false
Politics, climate change, global warming, koko
If you want an audience to take heed of what you have to say, sometimes the messenger who delivers it for you can be just as important as the message itself. Depending on the nature of your communiqué, you may find it has a much greater impact on your intended audience if it is conveyed a a sympathetic figure who can t...
29633
Court testimony proved that a biotech company harvests organs from live fetuses.
San Francisco Superior Court Judge Christopher Hite denied the prosecution’s request for a gag order, citing the attorney’s First Amendment rights and noting that prosecutors had failed to show a connection between the alleged harassment and statements made by Daleiden’s attorney. But the judge also stated that anyone ...
false
Politics
The anti-abortion website LifeSite published a story containing a headline that said the CEO of the biotech company StemExpress admitted in court to “selling beating baby hearts, intact baby heads.” That headline was not only false, but it presented a security risk to a witness in a criminal trial, according to a repor...
7024
Matchmaker’s business flourishes amid ‘dating app fatigue’.
Michal Naisteter approached a city planner at Reading Terminal Market and bantered with a pediatrician at the Bok Bar rooftop. At a Franklin Institute Science After Hours event, she was intrigued by a young entrepreneur, and she chatted up a Delaware politician at a local coffee shop.
true
Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, Financial markets, Business, Science, Dating, Reading
No matter where she meets people, her introduction remains the same. “Hey, I’m Michal. I’m a married matchmaker,” she says. “Are you by any chance single, ’cause I think you’re really cute.” All those people ended up saying yes to Naisteter, 35, who for two years has worked as a matchmaker for the national company Thre...
26689
A post comparing two construction workers — “Joe legal” and “Jose illegal” — says “Jose” pays no taxes yet gets free medical care, food stamps, welfare, and 'head of the class' priority for his children in applying for college.
The Facebook post ignores that a significant percentage of undocumented immigrants do pay income taxes, payroll taxes, and state and local taxes. It also ignores that most undocumented immigrants cannot legally claim federal benefits, such as food stamps and welfare. Young undocumented immigrants can get medical covera...
false
Immigration, Education, Health Care, Race and Ethnicity, Poverty, Workers, Facebook Fact-checks, Facebook posts,
"A Facebook post critical of illegal immigration — comparing two construction workers, ""Joe legal"" and ""Jose illegal"" — has been shared more than 222,000 times since it was created in July 2018, and it’s still circulating. But the post is rife with inaccuracies. You can read the full text of the 553-word post here....
8962
New blood test detects early stage pancreatic cancer
The headline of this news release — ‘New blood test detects early stage pancreatic cancer’ — is misleading since the study results are quite preliminary, and the blood test was given to those already known to have cancer. For many readers the headline might suggest there’s a new screening test currently available that ...
false
blood test,Lund University,pancreatic cancer
Cost is not mentioned. Although the blood test is experimental, researchers would likely be able to provide a rough estimate of what such a 29-biomarker assay might cost. From the lead author: “Our test can detect pancreatic cancer with 96% accuracy at stage I and II while there is still the possibility of successful s...
9931
Celebrex may curb colon cancer, but with caveats
This story about Celebrex’s potential to prevent colorectal cancer satisfied most of our criteria and gives readers the correct bottom line on this study. The story should have taken a bit more care to explain that the investigators were looking at a surrogate outcome, and it could have quantified the harms of treatmen...
true
Cancer,Reuters Health
The story manages to work costs into the discussion: “At a cost of several dollars per day, depending on dosage, [Celebrex] is much more expensive than older pain relievers such as ibuprofen.” The story reports the benefits in appropriate statistical terms, noting that “new polyps were found in 58 percent of people on ...
33092
"A riot broke out after a woman accidentally defecated while administering ""vodka butt shots"" on New Year's Eve."
Like Now8News, But Thats None Of My Business carried no disclaimer warning readers that its content consisted primarily or entirely of “satire” stories (the latter site didn’t even bother to upload a photo to its own site, and hotlinked to a third fake news site’s extant image). The existence of “vodka butt shots” itse...
false
Junk News, but thats none of my business, fake news, hoaxes
On 27 December 2015, the web site Now8News published an article titled “Woman Gives ‘Vodka Butt Shots’ At Bar, Causing Riot After Diarrhea Explosion”; a more popular iteration was published on 4 January 2016 by the site But Thats [sic] None Of My Business (the latter included the “New Year’s Eve” embellishment.) Accord...
4811
Trump tells young athletes to play to win, have a good life.
Taking his turn in the batting cage and swinging a golf club, President Donald Trump joined a group of famous athletes for a field day with kids at the White House on Wednesday as he kicked off an effort to increase youth participation in sports.
true
Baseball, Misty May-Treanor, Mariano Rivera, Youth sports, New York, Politics, Beach volleyball, North America, Health, Sports, Golf, Herschel Walker, Donald Trump
“Work hard, get in the game, play to win and, most of all, have a good time,” the president told the youngsters. He later told them to “have a great life.” His administration wants to reverse a trend of declining participating in athletic activity and to make youth sports more accessible to economically disadvantaged s...
9123
Colored glasses may provide light sensitivity relief post-concussion
This release offers few details on the actual benefits and evidence of wearing colored lenses to reduce light sensitivity following a concussion. There is no cost information, no comparison to alternatives (although alternatives are mentioned), no specific results on how patients fared in reducing light sensitivity and...
mixture
concussion,light senstivity,photophobia,University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center
There is no mention of costs in the release. The study provides no actual numbers to back up the claim that 85 percent of the patients had improvements in their symptoms. The only hard number it mentions is “51 patients.” But the study itself says, “Of the 39 patients studied who had vision symptoms, 76% complained of ...
5564
2 Rutgers students diagnosed with bacterial meningitis.
Officials at Rutgers University say two students have been diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, and both students were hospitalized.
true
Health, Rutgers University, Meningitis
The latest case was reported Saturday while the other student was sent to the hospital on Feb. 4. NJ.com reports the first hospitalized student has been since released. The student admitted to the hospital over the weekend is being tested to determine the type of bacteria that caused the infection. Health officials hav...
17807
"Live cats have holes drilled into their skulls,"" posts put into their heads and coils put into their eyes, and some have had their ears cut off or are intentionally deafened or starved at UW-Madison labs that do research to improve hearing in humans."
"PETA said: ""Live cats have holes drilled into their skulls,"" posts put into their heads and coils put into their eyes, and some have had their ears cut off or are intentionally deafened or starved at UW-Madison labs that do research to improve hearing in humans. Overall, some of the various parts of the statement we...
mixture
Animals, Education, Health Care, Public Health, Science, Wisconsin, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals,
"Using a robo-call and a video, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals condemned experiments on cats that are done at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in an effort to improve hearing in humans. Yes, felines, as in your pet Fluffy. It turns out the UW has used domestic cats in such experiments for more than 30 y...
6488
Abating bait: Decline in prized worms threatens way of life.
Dan Harrington makes his living unearthing marine worms by hacking away at mudflats with a tool that resembles the business end of an old steel rake.
true
AP Top News, Fish, Business, Science, AP Weekend Reads, Maine, Dan Harrington, U.S. News
He’s fine with the freezing weather, the pungent aromas and the occasional nip from an angry crab, but his latest problem is the big one — the worms just aren’t there like they used to be. “A bad day is zero worms,” said Harrington, a second-generation worm raker. “A bad day is when you try out five, six different spot...
13337
Cancer and matters to do with kidney failure kill more people in Kenya today than malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS combined.
"Ruto said that cancer and kidney disease ""kill more people in Kenya today than malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS combined."" The precision of the numbers leaves a lot to be desired, but based on the best estimates, Ruto isn’t even close. Using conservative estimates, deaths from AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis are double...
false
Global News Service, Public Health, William Ruto,
"At the launch of a new political party at a sports stadium in Nairobi, Kenya, the country’s deputy president William Ruto talked about a disease that Vice President Joe Biden has made his life’s mission. At the start of the year, following the death of Biden’s son to brain cancer, the vice president took the lead in t...
31774
The FBI raided the CDC in the middle of the night to seize data on a link between vaccines and autism.
WhatDoesItMean.com’s conspiracies seem to have a longer shelf life than most fake news since they’re often based on actual events or tragedies and layered with embellishments picked to fit existing rumors. Moreover, the CDC raid claim was popularized via a personal blog attributed to a doctor and not the known fake new...
false
Junk News, cdc, fake news, fbi
On 23 January 2017 a blogger (going by the name Dr. William Mount) published an article claiming that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had conducted a middle-of-the-night raid on the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in search of data proving a link between vaccines and autism: This morning...
4828
Alaska Mental Health Trust begins accepting land sale bids.
A mental health department has begun accepting bids for parcels of land in southeast Alaska up for auction in its annual land sale, officials said.
true
Mental health, Health, General News, Ketchikan, Alaska, Juneau
All plots of land, ranging from $12,400 to $112,000 would be sold to the highest bidder in a sealed bid submission process, the Juneau Empire reported Friday. The Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority is expected to continue the auction until Nov. 12, Trust officials said. The Trust Land Office in Anchorage is expected ...
37483
A viral photograph shows people gathered at the Ohio State House to protest coronavirus social distancing measures, and clearly in violation of said guidelines, in April 2020.
Viral ‘Ohio State House COVID-19 Protest’ Image
true
Fact Checks, Viral Content
On April 14 2020, images of a large crowd gathered in Ohio to protest COVID-19 social distancing measures (while clearly violating those measures) circulated on social media:Trump supporters protest against #Quarantine policies in Ohio. 😳#Covid_19 pic.twitter.com/8ksZO6rq3h— Zakieyah Koronfol (@ZakieyahK) April 15, 20...
31323
A woman was hospitalized with burns after photocopying her breasts in Bishan, Singapore.
Eye experts play down the risks of photocopying the face once or twice.
false
Medical, health, Medical, pranks
On 22 May 2017, the Telegraph Sun web site reported that a Singaporean woman was hospitalized with burns after photocopying her breasts in a prank. A 25-year-old Singaporean woman is recovering in hospital after an attempted prank involving a photocopier backfired painfully for her yesterday afternoon. According to loc...
1953
Moderate drinking cuts risk of Alzheimer's, study shows.
Light to moderate social drinking, a glass or two of wine or beer a day, can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to American researchers.
true
Health News
After analyzing more than 140 studies dating back to 1977 and involving more than 365,000 people, scientists at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine found that moderate drinkers were 23 percent less likely to develop forms of dementia and cognitive impairment. Moderate drinking is defined as a maximum o...
7882
India struggles with coronavirus shutdown; Pakistan cases top 1,000.
India’s 1.3 billion people were under lockdown on Wednesday to prevent an explosion of coronavirus cases as the government struggled to deliver essential goods and calm nerves.
true
Health News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered everyone indoors for the next three weeks, saying it was the only way to avoid a disaster and effectively shutting down Asia’s third-largest economy. Crowds of people thronged shops to stock up on milk, rations and medicines in the hours before the restrictions went into effect at m...
10882
Diabetes drugs may help control lung cancer: study
Early-stage research is attractive, but there’s baggage. Preliminary studies have indeed shown an association between diabetes drugs and reduced spread of lung cancer, yet anytime we try to interpret early research, we need to keep in mind why further studies are needed. With abysmal survival rates, lung cancer needs m...
mixture
Cancer,Reuters Health
Costs aren’t quite relevant as there are no regimens to compare yet. In other words, this was not a prospective study comparing different methods to prevent or treat cancer. However, we give a nod because we’re told that generic metformin is cheaper than TZDs. The article presents the rates of metastatic disease for ea...
24185
"In the Senate version of the health reform bill, ""Every enrollee in the Office of Personnel Management enrolled plan, every enrollee has to pay a minimum of $1 per month towards reproductive rights, which includes abortion."
Stupak says every enrollee in the Office of Personnel Management plan would have to to pay a minimum of $1 per month towards abortion
false
Abortion, National, Health Care, Bart Stupak,
"With abortion as one of the biggest remaining stumbling blocks in the health care reform push, Rep. Bart Stupak has been in high demand on political talk shows. An antiabortion Democrat from Michigan, Stupak says he and at least 11 other House Democrats would vote against the Senate language on abortion, which he says...
6909
UK reviews medical marijuana ban after outcry over sick kids.
The British government announced Tuesday it would move to lift its ban on cannabis-based medicines, amid mounting criticism over the denial of treatment to severely epileptic children. But it rejected calls to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
true
Legal Marijuana, Medical marijuana, Health, International News, Sajid Javid, Europe
Home Secretary Sajid Javid told lawmakers cases like that of a 12-year-old epileptic boy denied cannabis oil for his condition showed there is “a pressing need to allow those who might benefit from cannabis based medicines to access them.” But he said the government had “absolutely no plans” to decriminalize the drug m...
22371
About 22 percent of adults in Rhode Island and approximately 30 percent of youth (ages 10-17) are considered obese.
Rep. McNamara says 30 percent of Rhode Island youth, 22 percent of adults, are obese.
mixture
Rhode Island, Children, Public Health, Joseph McNamara,
"Obesity is a heavy topic. Too many extra pounds add to our risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, sleep disturbances and a host of other problems. Research shows that, as a nation, we are getting fatter. That's more than a problem just for people who are overweight. When obesity levels rise and the population become...
10782
Keep That 1876 Journal Handy, It Just May Help Treat Diabetes
This is an engaging piece, detailing some of the behind the scenes work to uncover an additional use for a generic medication. While painting a generally optimistic view about the potential benefit of salsalate for people with type 2 diabetes, the story did not provide much information about the magnitude of benefit or...
mixture
Although there was no specific price mentioned, the medication was described as ‘a cheap generic’. Further – there was discussion about a goal being to see it remain inexpensive. That said – it still would have been helpful to include the price since it is a currently available product. The story did not provide inform...
7292
Unfunded mental health mandates weigh on Indiana schools.
Some Indiana schools are worried that they don’t have the time or money to implement all of the mental health training mandated by state law.
true
Mental health, General News, Bullying, Suicide prevention, Terre Haute, Indiana
Teachers are required to undergo regular training on suicide prevention, child abuse and neglect, human trafficking, bullying and CPR. Lawmakers this year added a requirement for all school employees who come into contact with students to undergo seizure awareness training. That law takes effect next July. “It sounds l...
9295
Expanding Naloxone use could reduce drug overdose deaths and save lives
This news release from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advocates for wider use of the opioid antidote naloxone (narcan) among basic emergency medical staff to help prevent overdose deaths. But the argument it makes is confusing and not very well supported by the data in the study being reported on....
false
CDC,heroin,naloxone,narcan,opioids,overdose
There is no mention of costs, either of the drug itself or of providing more training to basic EMTs to achieve certification to administer it. The release does not quantify the benefits of allowing staff with less experience to administer this drug. It says only that, “advanced EMS staff were more likely than basic EMS...
34383
Coconut oil is an effective treatment for Alzheimer's disease.
There are plausible mechanisms behind the notion that coconut oil could help with Alzheimer's, but the research is in its infancy.
unproven
Medical, ASP Article, Disease
The cause of Alzheimer’s is unknown, although theories abound. Some evidence suggests that one cause could be related to lack of glucose metabolism in certain parts of the brain, as described in a 2014 case study published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience: The brain is one of the most metabolically active organs in t...
11853
Satanists have teamed up with the ACLU and Planned Parenthood in Missouri to roll back the rights of the unborn.
"Our ruling Rep. Ann Wagner claimed on her campaign website that ""Satanists have teamed up with the ACLU and Planned Parenthood in Missouri to roll back the rights of the unborn."" Rep. Ann Wagner claimed on her campaign website that ""Satanists have teamed up with the ACLU and Planned Parenthood in Missouri to roll b...
false
Abortion, Legal Issues, Missouri, Ann Wagner,
"U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., has been circulating a petition, encouraging constituents to add their names to ""Stand for Life"" against Satanists, the ACLU and Planned Parenthood. She’s posted on Twitter and Facebook, linking to a petition on her campaign website, that says ""Satanists have teamed up with the ACLU and...
28679
A new Social Security Administration rule would bar Social Security recipients from owning guns.
What's true: A new Social Security Administration rule would add Social Security disability recipients who have been deemed unable to manage their own affairs to the federal background check system for gun purchases. What's false: All Social Security recipients are not being barred from owning or purchasing guns, and p...
mixture
Politics Guns, gun control, social security
In July 2015, the Social Security Administration (SSA) proposed — and in December 2016 issued — new rules to “implement provisions of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (NIAA) that require Federal agencies to provide relevant records to the Attorney General for inclusion in the National Instant Criminal Backgr...
4698
4 charged with defrauding insurers of more than $200M.
Four Mississippi residents are accused of defrauding insurers of more than $200 million, the latest indictments in a still-unfolding investigation into pharmacies that prosecutors say bribed health care providers to prescribe handcrafted high-dollar medications that were in many cases unnecessary.
true
Mississippi, Health, Indictments, Business, Laurel, U.S. News, Hattiesburg
Indictments against Hope Thomley and Randy Thomley of Hattiesburg, Glenn Beach Jr. of Sumrall, and Gregory Parker of Laurel were unsealed Monday in Hattiesburg. The Thomleys and Beach were associated with Advantage Pharmacy, one of the businesses that authorities place at the center of the scheme. Advantage pharmacist ...
36064
"People should rescue fawns with ""curled ears,"" but leave fawns with ""straight ears"" alone, as a fawn with ""curled ears"" has been abandoned."
‘Ears are Straight, Fawn is Great, Ears are Curled, Fawn is Alone in the World’ Wildlife Rescue Meme
mixture
Fact Checks, Viral Content
"In October 2019, the Facebook page “Wild Souls Wildlife Rescue and Rehab” shared a following meme advising people to leave fawns with straight ears alone,  because “curled ears” are indicative that a young deer has been abandoned by its family:The page added:Let’s say it together.. Ears are curled fawn alone in the wo...
10030
Even at Advised Doses, Tylenol May Harm Liver
This is an article that reports on a recent research study that suggests that the recommended maximum dose of Tylenol may be sufficient to cause problems in the liver. It would have been helpful for the article to point out that patients should be aware of the acetaminophen content of all medication (prescription and o...
true
There is no mention of the costs for acetaminophen. But since the focus of the story is on harms of the drug, not on promoting its use, cost is less of an issue. There were no benefits in this study; the study volunteers were healthy volunteers. The implied message is that acetaminophen may not in fact be safe. Althoug...
2630
Exercise, meds both help depressed heart patients.
People with heart disease who are also depressed may get as much relief from their depression symptoms with regular exercise as with medication, according to a U.S. study.
true
Health News
People take part in a free weekly yoga class on the front lawn of Parliament Hill in Ottawa July 25, 2012. The class runs every Wednesday from May through September. REUTERS/Chris Wattie Researchers writing in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that of 101 heart patients with signs of depression, t...
1770
Science meets voodoo in a New Orleans festival of water.
Perhaps no other city in the United States is as well-suited as New Orleans to wed a scientific discussion of environment with a celebration of the occult.
true
Environment
That’s exactly what unfolded on Saturday at “Anba Dlo,” an annual New Orleans festival where prominent scientists joined with practitioners of the voodoo religion to look for answers to the challenges of dealing with water. In “The Big Easy,” a low-lying Louisiana city devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and threat...
9473
Adamas Pharma secures approval for Parkinson's dyskinesia drug
One of the main drugs used to treat Parkinson’s disease, levodopa, frequently causes a disabling side effect known as dyskinesia. Drugmakers of a newly approved drug, Gocovri, claim their medication can ease this side effect. For patients, Gocrovi may be a welcome addition. But there are a number of important unanswere...
false
Gocovri,Parkinson's
While raising hopes of patients, it is irresponsible to be mentioning this “new” drug, as well as its basic, generically-available ingredient, amantadine, without discussing costs to patients. The new drug is likely to be much more expensive than generic amantadine, as this STAT article reports. The only benefit inform...
35184
U.S. President Donald Trump advocated that the pay of public officials be stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic.
All Americans should share this and we make this demand of our Government. That is OUR MONEY! !
false
Politics, COVID-19
In March 2020, the COVID-19 coronavirus disease pandemic prompted many state and local governments to issue temporary orders imposing shelter-in-place, lockdown, and business closure restrictions in order to slow the spread of the virus. Many businesses that were shut down had to lay off workers, leaving some people fa...
29100
Access to Michelle Obama's senior thesis was restricted until after the 2008 presidential election.
What's true: In early 2008 Princeton University placed a restriction on access to Michelle Obama's senior thesis that was stated as lasting until the day after the presidential election of November 2008. What's false: Princeton lifted the restriction on access to the thesis in March of 2008.
mixture
Politics Politicians, barack obama, michelle obama
In every U.S. presidential election campaign, the two major parties’ candidates become the subjects of prolonged and intense scrutiny, with seemingly everything they’ve ever said or done becoming fodder for endless analysis, interpretation and criticism. The scrutiny doesn’t always stop with the candidates themselves, ...
1414
UK cost body finally approves limited use of GSK's lupus drug.
Britain’s healthcare cost watchdog has finally approved GlaxoSmithKline’s lupus drug Benlysta for limited use, after rejecting it since 2011 on the grounds that it failed to offer good value for money.
true
Health News
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) said on Tuesday that the drug would be made available under a managed access scheme between GSK and the National Health Service (NHS) in England. This requires the treatment to be reviewed by NICE after three years, during which time further data will be coll...
8216
South Korea designates regions hit hardest by coronavirus as disaster zones.
South Korea on Sunday reported 76 new coronavirus cases and three deaths, marking the first time in over three weeks that new cases have dropped to double-digits, as President Moon Jae-in declared the hardest hit provinces “special disaster zones”.
true
Health News
It is the first time South Korea has declared a region a disaster zone from an infectious disease and under the status the government can subsidize up to 50% of restoration expenses and exempt residents from taxes and utility payments. South Korea, which has the highest number of cases in Asia after China, now has a to...
930
China vows to tackle dead pig scam amid swine fever epidemic.
Criminal gangs in China are faking outbreaks of African swine fever on farms free of the disease and forcing farmers to sell their healthy pigs at sharply lower prices, the agriculture ministry said on Friday.
true
Health News
The gangs are taking advantage of a highly contagious disease that has spread across much of the country and disrupted the world’s biggest pork market. The scam involves dumping dead pigs on farms and then spreading rumors that the farms are infected with African swine fever, which is often fatal for pigs but harmless ...
36207
"The Australian ""Gympie-Gympie"" plant causes such intense pain that touching it is a likely death sentence."
Does the Australian ‘Gympie-Gympie’ Drive People to Suicide?
false
Fact Checks, Health / Medical, Viral Content
While the damage caused by the plant species Dendrocnide moroides has been recounted in various outlets, one graphic spreading in August 2019 adds apocryphal claims to the stories around it.The graphic shows a photograph of the plant, commonly known as the “Gympie-Gympie,” with a caption reading:The world’s most poison...
34110
"Austin public schools will force parents to allow the district to teach children ""how to have anal sex."
Because the Starnes article falsely states that the sex-ed classes offered at Austin ISD are “mandatory” when parents can in fact opt their children out, and because it grossly misrepresents the course material, we are labeling this claim “False.”
false
Politics, fake outrage
As Austin public schools prepared to implement an overhauled sex-education curriculum for students third to eighth grade, an inflammatory and homophobic article by former Fox News commentator Todd Starnes circulated online, prompting some readers to ask Snopes whether it was accurate. “Texas School District Mandates Te...
3925
Medical marijuana in Louisiana: Questions about cost arise.
Three months after medical marijuana became available in Louisiana, doctors and clinics say some patients are finding the cost for therapeutic cannabis too high for treatment, pricing them out of a medication they waited years to obtain.
true
Medication, U.S. News, Medical marijuana, Health, General News, Marijuana, U.S. News, Louisiana, Baton Rouge
Nine pharmacies dispense medicinal-grade pot and set their individual prices. Dispensary owners say their charges reflect an industry with startup charges, small patient numbers and lengthy regulatory hurdles to meet. In August, Louisiana became the first Deep South state — and one of more than 30 states nationwide — t...
27786
"Hillary Clinton once said that ""women have always been the primary victims of war."
[We] reiterate deep concern that, despite its repeated condemnation of violence against women and children in situations of armed conflict, including sexual violence in situations of armed conflict, and despite its calls addressed to all parties to armed conflict for the cessation of such acts with immediate effect, su...
true
Politics Politicians, hillary clinton
In December 2015, an image of Hillary Clinton was circulated via social media along with a quote ostensibly uttered by her about the primary victims of war: This quote originated with a 17 November 1998 speech that Hillary Clinton (as First Lady) delivered at a conference on domestic violence in El Salvador. One of the...
8179
Overcrowded and unsanitary, Venezuela's prisons brace for coronavirus.
The arrival of coronavirus in Venezuela is fueling concerns the disease could spread like a fast-moving fire through the country’s notoriously overcrowded and unsanitary prisons.
true
Health News
Venezuela’s inmate population swelled during a decade-long surge in crime, overwhelming prisons and leading many police stations to convert temporary holding cells into ersatz jails where the accused can spend months or years awaiting trial. Venezuelan detention centers frequently lack bathrooms, people sleep on floors...
25837
Federal agents in Portland have been “kidnapping and holding citizens without charges.”
When Trump threatened to send federal agents to Philadelphia, U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) accused the officers in Portland of “kidnapping and holding citizens without charges.”    A federal judge ruled that one protester’s arrest was unconstitutional, and a Trump administration official said federal agents lacked pro...
true
National, Criminal Justice, Pennsylvania, Bob Casey,
"Democrats and civil libertarians have decried the Trump administration’s response to unrest in Portland, Ore., in recent weeks. Federal agents have been criticized for beating and pepper spraying a peaceful Navy veteran and shooting another man in the face with a nonlethal munition, fracturing his skull. When Presiden...
10989
Prozac shows promise in recovery from stroke
The story neglected to assess the quality of the evidence, and, thus, its tone prematurely casts an early study as a game-changer. It takes impressive results in a small number of patients for a nasty condition and builds up unbridled enthusiasm. “Largest study yet” doesn’t mean large enough to jump to conclusions. Str...
mixture
Reuters Health,Stroke
It mentions that the drug is available generically and is generally inexpensive. It also discusses the economic impact of stroke, teeing up the potential downstream cost savings, in terms of disability care avoided, if the benefit of fluoxetine in this setting proves to durable. The story cites the absolute improvement...
17817
Neville Chamberlain told the British people: ‘Accept the Nazis. Yes, they will dominate the continent of Europe, but that is not our problem. Let's appease them. Why? Because it can't be done. We cannot possibly stand against them.’
"Cruz said Chamberlain ""told the British people: ‘Accept the Nazis. Yes, they will dominate the continent of Europe, but that is not our problem. Let's appease them. Why? Because it can't be done. We cannot possibly stand against them.’ "" We see an element of truth in this claim; Chamberlain invested repeatedly in di...
false
Health Care, History, Texas, Ted Cruz,
"In his September 2013 day-night-and-day U.S. Senate floor speech challenging the Obamacare law, Ted Cruz of Texas suggested that anyone saying the 2010 law could not be defunded was, well, being un-American. Brave colonists rebelled against the British, the Houston Republican said, when pundits of the age said it coul...
9244
Novel 'patient-friendly' colonoscopy prep shows excellent efficacy and safety
This release summarizes an investigational study on a ‘novel’ colonoscopy bowel preparation under development by a Massachusetts-based company. The release claims that the prep is a more palatable regimen that includes solid food bars and low-volume beverages. Researchers report that by the end of the Stage 2 clinical ...
mixture
Bioscribe,colon cancer screening,colonoscopy prep
Although the prep is still moving through clinical trial stages, the anticipated cost of this new formulation will be front-of-mind among folks reading stories about it. The earlier this kind of information is offered the better. The release provides a modest amount of information on the results of the study providing ...
26806
Facebook post Says the CDC recommends men shave their beards to protect against coronavirus.
A 2017 CDC infographic shows how facial hair could interfere with respirator masks. The graphic is unrelated to coronavirus protection and the CDC has not recommended people should shave their beards to ward off the virus.
false
Public Health, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts,
"Amid increased fears about a potential coronavirus outbreak in the United States, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention graphic from 2017 has resurfaced online along with the claim that the organization is recommending men shave their beards to protect against the virus. This is not true. The organization has m...
4902
Study: Louisiana Medicaid expansion program has $3.5B impact.
Louisiana’s Medicaid expansion program has helped create or support nearly 19,200 jobs across the state and $178 million in state and local taxes, according to a new economic analysis.
true
John Bel Edwards, Health, Medicaid, Local taxes, Louisiana
The three LSU professors hired by the state health department to look at the program during the 2016-17 budget year determined that the infusion of $1.8 billion in federal spending on health care through the Medicaid expansion had a $3.5 billion economic impact in Louisiana. Economist Jim Richardson, the lead author on...
8751
Breast cancer vaccine helps body fight tumors.
Researchers who designed one experimental breast cancer vaccine say they have fine-tuned the process and come up with another that they hope will be more effective.
true
Science News
Breast cancer cells are seen in a handout photo. REUTERS/NCI/Handout Their new vaccine delivers a cancer-fighting gene into cells, which then produce immune system proteins as well as tumor-destroying cells. “In our own mind it is a very significant advance because we have put the gene into the cells in the body. The v...
36487
Image shows anti-socialism buttons opposing Medicare during the administrations of Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson.
Are FDR and LBJ Era ‘Say No to Socialism’ Buttons Authentic?
false
Fact Checks, Politics
On February 21 2019, economist and former United States Secretary of Labor Robert Reich published a tweet alongside what appeared to be an image of two political buttons from Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s and Lyndon B. Johnson’s campaigns:Although Reich made no specific reference to the “say ‘no’ to socialism” buttons sh...
11602
New melanoma drugs improve chances of survival
No discussion of drug costs – which are substantial. And the story didn’t explain, as the New York Times did, that 38% of vemurafenib trial participants had to stop taking the drug or lower the dose because of side effects. And there wasn’t a word about side effects from ipilimumab. The competing New York Times story u...
true
Cancer,Reuters Health
No discussion of costs – only of potential sales volume. Isn’t the significant cost of both drugs worth at least one line a story like this? Adequate job reporting the benefits seen in the two trials. The story mentioned only skin rashes and joint pain from vemurafenib, but the story didn’t explain, as the New York Tim...
9678
Blood-boosters may give tiny preemies a developmental edge
We liked both the quantification of the improvements seen in neurocognitive behavior and the context that is provided by an expert not associated with the study. Clear emphasis put on the fact that it’s a very small study and needs confirmation. Although the preterm birth rate in the United States has fallen in the pas...
mixture
Associated Press
The costs of care for premature infants is very high (estimated to be $50,000 in a 2007 study) in comparison to children born at term. Both drugs used in the study are expensive as well, adding to the cost of care. We appreciate that there are likely economic and clinical tradeoffs that extend to later life in these ch...
9749
A Grief So Deep It Won’t Die
This feature story uses powerful anecdotes to examine whether “complicated” grief can be remedied by special therapy. The story references a review article in the New England Journal of Medicine, but appears to rest mainly on a single small clinical trial. We thought the quality of this evidence deserved a bit more scr...
mixture
depression,diagnosis,DSM,grief,therapy
The story does not tell us what it costs to get 16 weeks of complicated grief therapy. The insurance issues for medical care are thorny enough, but mental health coverage often lags behind other categories. The story would have been more useful had it mentioned that most therapy costs upwards of $150 an hour, and that ...
2677
U.S. dietary supplements often contaminated: report.
Many popular dietary supplements contain ingredients that may cause cancer, heart problems, liver or kidney damage, but U.S. stores sell them anyway and Americans spend millions on them, according to Consumer Reports.
true
Science News
The consumer magazine published a report on Tuesday highlighting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s lack of power to regulate such supplements, and said the agency rarely uses what little power it does have. The report from the influential group urged Congress to speed up small moves toward giving the agency more ...
10423
The Case Against – and for – Arthroscopic Knee Surgery
This news story uses a recent meta-analysis of already-published research as the news hook to review the pros and cons of arthroscopic knee surgery to treat both acute and chronic knee pain. The article overall leaves thoughtful readers with a “think twice or thrice” take home message if they are considering arthroscop...
true
U.S. News & World Report
Although the article puts an overall price tag on arthroscopy nationwide, the reader will not learn what a typical arthroscopy costs, whether most or all are covered by insurance (including Medicaid and Medicare) and the comparative costs of cortisone injections, NSAIDS, life style changes and knee replacement surgery....
37705
"Oprah Winfrey condoned child abuse, and said if the abuser is ""any good"" the child will never register the abuse as abuse."
A clip claiming that Oprah effectively “condoned” child molestation, with obvious jumps and half-sentences, was clearly taken out of context to push a specific QAnon-related agenda during a July and August 2020 spate of child trafficking rumors. In proper context, Oprah referenced her own experiences as a child subject...
false
Disinformation, Fact Checks
Child trafficking and abuse conspiracy theories circulated in July and August 2020 thanks to ongoing disinformation campaigns, such as the now-infamous — and entirely debunked every step of the way — QAnon conspiracy theory; among those was a TikTok video shared to Facebook, in which Oprah Winfrey appears to condone th...
19487
Seven presidents before (Barack Obama) -- Republicans and Democrats -- tried to expand health care to all Americans.
"Castro said that ""seven presidents before (Obama) -- Republicans and Democrats -- tried to expand health care to all Americans."" It’s a slam dunk getting to three or four presidents, and it’s possible to reach seven presidents, but to do that requires a looser interpretation of expanding coverage ""to all Americans....
true
National, Health Care, History, Julián Castro,
"President Barack Obama’s health care law has been one of the most polarizing aspects of his presidency, with Republicans criticizing it at every turn. But the keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, didn’t run from it. He applauded Obama for pursuing e...
7884
J&J, Moderna sign deals with U.S. to produce huge quantity of possible coronavirus vaccines.
The U.S. government has cut deals with Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) and Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) and said it is in talks with at least two other companies to prepare them to produce massive quantities of coronavirus vaccines even before safe and effective ones become available.
true
Health News
There are currently no approved treatments or vaccines specifically for COVID-19, the respiratory disease that has killed more than 35,000 people and infected over 745,000 globally in just a few months. No vaccine is expected to be ready for use until at least 2021, as they must still be widely tested in humans before ...
35882
"In summer 2020, U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden's campaign released a so-called ""Muslim ad"" courting Muslim voters."
"What's true: A political ad uses genuine clips from a speech Biden delivered during the ""Million Muslim Votes Summit"" in 2020. What's false: However, this video was not created or endorsed by the Biden campaign."
false
Politics, 2020 election
In September 2020, Snopes readers began asking about a video supposedly showing a “Biden Muslim ad” shared on social media and often accompanied by misleading information. For example, some social media users falsely claimed that this ad was created by Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s campaign team. Others...