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10629 | Restoring testosterone rather than replacing it helps safeguard a man's fertility | What does it mean when a news release states that an approach “helps safeguard a man’s fertility?” The Limitations section of the study, which the news release describes, gives a very good look at what isn’t known and what perhaps can’t be said at this stage of research. But the news release uses definitive, positive t... | false | Journal news release | The news release doesn’t give the cost of either of the drugs that are compared in the study. The release simply states that “enclomiphene citrate restored blood testosterone levels to normal after 16 weeks.” But in a news release for which the headline states testosterone “helps safeguard a man’s fertility,” we look f... |
29267 | "Undocumented immigrants in the United States receive a job, a driver's license, food stamps, health care, housing, education, a ""tax-free business for seven years,"" and ""child benefits." | "What's true: Undocumented immigrants are entitled to public education in most parts of the United States. What's false: Undocumented immigrants are not entitled to most of the government benefits afforded to United States citizens, particularly when it comes to health care and housing. Far from getting a ""tax free bu... | false | Racial Rumors, daca, immigration, undocumented immigrants | A nine year-old viral Facebook post that portrays the United States as soft on illegal immigration enjoyed something of a resurgence in early 2018, most likely in light of ongoing negotiations between President Donald Trump and Congressional Democrats over the fate of immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children... |
39082 | A widely circulated message encourages recipients to sign an online petition in support of “The Breast Cancer Protection Act” in the U.S. Congress. It would require insurance companies to cover a minimum of a 48 hour hospital stay for women who have undergone mastectomies. You are linked to Lifeline television for... | Petition in Support of The Breast Cancer Protection Act | true | Government, Health / Medical, Medical, Pleas | According to Lifetime TV, this is true. A petition was circulated by Lifetime in 1996, but the Breast Cancer Protection Act never came to vote. The measure has been reintroduced b y U.S. representative Rosa DeLauro. Their goal is to prevent women from having to leaving the hospital after a mastectomy before they are re... |
38436 | Benefits of the power of a supplement called “Inteligen” to increase intelligence have been trumpeted by the likes of CNN’s Anderson Cooper and Stephen Hawking. | Claims About Brain-Boosting Inteligen Pill Supplement | unproven | Health / Medical | There’s no scientific proof that Inteligen actually increases intelligence, focus or memory recall — so you should be leery of any promises that it makes. The issue with products like Inteligen is that they’re considered “supplements” under the law, so the FDA does not subject them to oversight. That means the maker of... |
9264 | Experts say inexpensive drug could slow heart disease for type 1 diabetic patients | This news release from Newcastle University reports on a small pilot study testing whether type 1 diabetes patients who add the drug metformin to their daily regimen reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease. Based on a reduction in markers indicating blood vessel damage, and an increase in markers indicating blood v... | false | metforim,Newcastle University,Type 1 diabetes treatment | The release makes no mention of costs at all, although the unit cost of the drug is both quite low and readily available. Diabetic patients already spend a substantive amount for their medications over their lives and knowing that the addition of this other drug would not be an undue financial burden would be a welcome... |
5624 | Cantwell, Hutchison meet in second Washington Senate debate. | Candidates in Washington’s U.S. senate race clashed Saturday over policies on the environment, trade and tariffs, immigration and health care. | true | Global trade, Spokane, Maria Cantwell, Washington, Environment, Environmental policy, Tacoma, Donald Trump | Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Democrat, and Republican challenger Susan Hutchison held their second debate in Spokane and touched on many of the themes they struck in their first debate Oct. 8 in Tacoma, the KING 5 television station reported. Cantwell said she supports efforts to reduce greenhouse gasses and reliance on foss... |
31297 | Facebook revised its position on to female toplessness or nipple exposure in imagery as of May 2017. | As Mark [Zuckerberg, the Facebook CEO] mentioned in his community letter, “each person should see as little objectionable content as possible, and each person should be able to share what they want while being told they cannot share something as little as possible,” so we are always open to finding ways to allow more c... | false | Technology, facebook, nipples, nudity | In late May 2017, rumors appeared that a long-standing ban on female toplessness (particularly showing women’s nipples) had been lifted or revised: However, the posts generally did not provide links to any information supporting the claim. In 2014, Facebook changed its policy on photographs showing breastfeeding, ins... |
8605 | Masks should be prioritized for health workers to avoid shortage against coronavirus: WHO. | The World Health Organization (WHO) voiced concern on Monday that the wearing of medical masks by the general public could exacerbate the shortage for health workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. | true | Health News | It said lockdowns in many places are proving effective in dampening spread of the coronavirus but any lifting of restrictions requires a calibrated, step-wise approach based on data. European nations including hardest-hit Italy and Spain have started looking ahead to easing their lockdowns as fatality rates have fallen... |
2848 | China's Nu Skin probe drags down Herbalife, USANA too. | China’s regulators launched probes into skincare products maker Nu Skin Enterprises Inc after local media questioned the U.S. company’s business practices, dragging down shares of several retailers that use similar distribution models. | true | Health News | Nu Skin shares shed a third of their market value by Thursday afternoon. Shares of nutritional supplements maker Herbalife Ltd fell 10 percent, while those of USANA Health Sciences were down 12 percent. Earlier Thursday, the Xinhua news agency said the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) ordered local... |
37524 | A group of chief executive officers resigned their positions suspiciously close to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. | Did a Phalanx of Corporate Chief Executive Officers Step Down Ahead of COVID-19? | false | Fact Checks, Viral Content | In March 2020, as conspiracy theorists rushed to find “meaning” to the COVID-19 pandemic, one graphic circulating online listed departures from several high-profile companies which suggested that the executives left their positions in advance of the disease spreading:But looking at the actual circumstances of the compa... |
31506 | A convicted pedophile rapist was caught using a clown costume to hide in a child's room. | This fake news story mirrors an urban legend about serial killers disguising themselves as various inanimate objects. While this legend reappears from time to time, it’s safe to say that homicidal maniacs and pedophiles have not commonly taken to donning clown costumes and passing themselves off as items of home decor. | false | Junk News, now8news | On 2 December 2015, the web site Now8News published a story reporting that a convicted pedophile was caught using a clown costume to hide in a child’s room in Oregon: If you are afraid of clowns we warn you — DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER — This true story out of Oregon is what nightmares are made of. A 48-year-old Oregon tw... |
35439 | U.S. President Donald Trump said that increased COVID-19 testing makes the U.S. look bad by increasing coronavirus case numbers. | And during an interview with ABC News in May 2020, Trump again suggested that increased testing was in some way a negative because it increased the number of coronavirus cases reported by the U.S. relative to other countries: | true | Politics Quotes, COVID-19 | One of the hallmarks of U.S. President Donald Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 coronavirus disease pandemic crisis in the spring of 2020 was his repeatedly comparing the U.S. to other countries in areas such as COVID-19 testing, issuing (not necessarily accurate) declarations such as boasting that the U.S. had done “mo... |
21939 | Workers who pick produce in Georgia’s fields can make $12 to $18 an hour. | Some farm workers do earn high wages, but not all do | mixture | Georgia, Immigration, Gary Black, | "Recent talk about a shortage of workers in Georgia’s fields left your PolitiFact team wondering whether we should consider a career in cucumbers. The work may be hard, but if you believe Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black, the industry pays solid wages. ""Understand that these are $12, $13, $14, $16, $18 an hour jobs... |
33866 | Bill Clinton has quietly done away with several dozen people who possessed incriminating evidence about him. | The August 2019 in-custody death by suicide of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein triggered a new round of attempts to connect the Clintons with a murder plot conspiracy. | false | Politics, bill clinton, hillary clinton | Multiple versions of lengthy lists of deaths associated with Bill Clinton have been circulating online for about twenty years now (including the latest iteration, titled “The List of Clinton Associates Who Allegedly Died Mysteriously. Check It Out”). According to those lists, close to fifty colleagues, advisors, and ci... |
10231 | Studies: Surgery No Better for Sciatica | "This story reports on the publication of results from a large trial in the Journal of the American Medical Association evaluating surgery compared to non-operative care for the treatment of sciatica. This trial represented the first randomized trial of surgery for herniated disc in the US since 1983 and significantly ... | true | "The story mentions the cost of surgery. The story should have provided estimates of costs of non-operative care for comparison. The story provides quantification of benefits from the observational arm of the study only. The story should have provided the same numbers from the randomized arm. However, the story adequat... | |
9115 | Concurrent chemotherapy, proton therapy improves survival in patients with advanced lung cancer | lung cancer illustration We applaud the careful wording in this release and all the caveats provided. At the same time, because cancer effects such an emotional response in audiences, including journalists, there is an even higher standard one must meet to provide the appropriate notes of caution. One way to have done ... | true | lung cancer,M. D. Anderson Cancer Center,proton therapy | We’re not talking about a few pills a day here. We are talking about ongoing expensive treatment for five years. The costs needed to be explained as well as whether those costs are typically covered by insurance, especially in the kind of political climate we are in now, where health care coverage is the subject of hot... |
18537 | Harvard Study Finds States With Most Gun Laws Have Fewest Gun Deaths. | Facebook post ignores caveats in citing Harvard study on gun laws | mixture | Rhode Island, Criminal Justice, Crime, Public Safety, Guns, Facebook posts, | "Does having more gun laws in a state result in fewer gun deaths? You would think so if you've seen the recent Facebook posting, created by a group called Anti-Republican Crusaders and shared more than 1,700 times on that and another Facebook page. The posting has the Joe Friday character from TV's ""Dragnet"" saying, ... |
26604 | "Slices of lemon in a cup of hot water can save your life. The hot lemon can kill the proliferation of"" the novel coronavirus." | There is no scientific evidence that lemon can treat or prevent the coronavirus. Health officials have debunked the claim. The video comes from a man who promotes alternative health information on YouTube. To prevent coronavirus infection, health officials advise people to wash their hands, avoid touching their face an... | false | Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Chain message, | "A video being passed around on Facebook Messenger claims that curing the novel coronavirus is as easy as drinking hot lemon juice. The video, which a reader sent us on March 23, shows a series of stock images and videos with text underneath. A man with a British accent narrates. ""Use as much natural vitamin C as poss... |
8890 | Stryker Launches Partial Knee Resurfacing Systems. | Stryker Corp (SYK.N) said on Tuesday it has launched a partial knee resurfacing system in the United States. | true | Science News | The system preserves the most amount of natural bone, making it a less invasive way to treat diseased joints. Kalamazoo, Michigan-based Stryker, one of the top makers of reconstructive implants, said its system, called Triathlon PKR, is beneficial because it allows surgeons to provide personalized solutions by only sha... |
3115 | Buttigieg discloses ex-clients as fundraising swing begins. | Facing intense pressure to answer questions about his work in the private sector, Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday disclosed a roster of former consulting clients that include a major health insurance provider, a nationwide electronics retailer, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Departmen... | true | South Bend, New York, Politics, Pete Buttigieg, Election 2020, Business, AP Top News, Health insurance providers, General News, Indiana, Manhattan | He also opened a big-dollar fundraiser for the first time to the media, a change of heart he later admitted “took a little getting used to” but was “the right thing to do.” Buttigieg’s campaign released the details while the 37-year-old mayor of South Bend, Indiana, attended an evening fundraiser on Park Avenue in Manh... |
4109 | Nonprofit concerned about HIV spread among drug addicts. | A Boston nonprofit is voicing concern about the continued spread of HIV among residents struggling with opioid addiction. | true | Health, Boston, Infectious diseases, Massachusetts | The Whittier Street Health Center said Tuesday its outreach team identified two new cases of HIV in the notorious illegal drug market around Boston Medical Center in the city’s South End. Dr. Cyril Ubiem, director of infectious disease at the center, says he’s concerned the spread of HIV among Boston’s homeless and add... |
14324 | "Hillary Clinton Says Bernie Sanders ""wants higher standards for toy guns than real guns." | "Clinton said Sanders ""wants higher standards for toy guns than real guns."" Clinton points to the fact that Sanders voted in favor of a 2005 law granting the gun industry certain immunity from lawsuits. In her camp are scholars who believe the law made the gun industry less susceptible to liability than other industr... | mixture | National, Legal Issues, Voting Record, Guns, Hillary Clinton, | "Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders is putting gun manufacturers ahead of the Sandy Hook victims, says opponent Hillary Clinton. Twenty school-age children were killed in the 2012 shooting massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Now, some family members of the victims are attemptin... |
10504 | Beta Carotene Pills May Not Save Vision | "Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a signficant problem in the elderly. It is a slow, progressive disease that can ultimately lead to blindness over time. Unfortunately, there are few options available for prevention or treatment and this story discusses new evidence showing no benefit in terms of prevent AMD f... | true | "The story does not describe the cost of the supplements. The story does provide the actual number of cases of AMD observed in the supplement group compared to the ""dummy pill"" group. The story does mention that there is some evidence that beta-carotene raises the risk of lung cancer in smokers. The story adequately ... | |
4427 | EPA to scale back use of animals to test chemical toxicity. | The Environmental Protection Agency is aiming to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of mammals to test the toxicity of chemicals, a move backed by animal rights groups but criticized as irresponsible by a leading environmental organization. | true | Animals, General News, Politics, Environment, Animal testing, Animal rights, Donald Trump | A directive signed Tuesday by EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said that “scientific advancements exist today” that permit the agency to better predict potential hazards to humans while reducing or avoiding animal testing. Wheeler, a former coal industry lobbyist, has overseen President Donald Trump’s campaign to rollb... |
10021 | Stem cells offer hope for diabetics | "The story describes the use of adult stem cells to help control type 1 diabetes. The story provides absolute benefits (with some cautionary statements that these are preliminary) found in this small trial in 15 patients. However, the story gives no information about what type of study these results are based on (rando... | true | "The story doesn't mention costs of this new treatment. The story does quantify benefits, e.g. 13 out of 15 patients were able to stop taking insulin. And even though these results look promising at first glance, the story provides cautionary statements that these are just preliminary results. The story does not mentio... | |
8200 | More African countries confirm first coronavirus cases as Jack Ma pledges aid. | More African nations confirmed their first cases of the coronavirus and shut borders amid fears of the disease’s impact on fragile health systems, as Chinese billionaire and Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma pledged to donate over 1 million testing kits to the continent. | true | Health News | Thirty African countries - more than half the continent - are now treating nearly 400 patients with coronavirus, after Tanzania, Liberia, Benin and Somalia said they registered their first cases. Africa had until recently been spared the rapid spread of COVID-19, which has infected at least 180,000 people worldwide and... |
34344 | Taking one or more rides on the Big Thunder Mountain roller coaster at Walt Disney World can help dislodge kidney stones. | We reached out to Wartinger for further comment but had not heard back by publication time. | unproven | Medical, disney parks, disney world, kidney stones | Ask anyone who has experienced a urinary blockage due to kidney stones and they will tell you there is nothing fun or remotely pleasant about the experience. Caused when salt and mineral residues form small “stones” inside the kidneys that move and become stuck in the ureter (the passageway via which urine passes from ... |
38530 | Police in New Mexico arrested an undocumented Islamic refugee who had plans to a gas pipeline located in the area. | Islamic Refugee Arrested With Gas Pipeline Plans in New Mexico | false | 9/11 Attack on America | Local police have said reports of an undocumented Islamic refugee being arrested with gas pipeline plans are false. The story appeared at Judicial Watch on June 15, days after a terrorist attack left 50 dead at an Orlando nightclub, and under the headline, “’Islamic Refugee’ With Gas Pipeline Plans Arrested in New Mexi... |
9942 | Odd Treadmill May Help Stroke Survivors | The reporter has dealt well with a tough story: early observations about the neurology and mechanics of walking which have produced insights but no imminent clinical applications. The story conveys findings on basic neurological science in clear, accessible language. It indicates potential impact on practice and patien... | true | Because the treatment is still early in its development and its ultimate use in rehab unclear, there is no need to report its cost. Since the story describes experiments that have produced new insights into the neurology of walking, there is no comparative data on similar treatments available. The story implicitly rais... | |
7417 | WH blocking Fauci testimony to House panel, spokesman says. | A spokesman for a key House panel said Friday that the White House has blocked Dr. Anthony Fauci from testifying next week at a hearing on the coronavirus outbreak. | true | Appropriations, Health, Anthony Fauci, General News, Politics, Infectious diseases, Virus Outbreak | House Appropriations Committee spokesman Evan Hollander said the panel sought Fauci — the highly respected director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases — as a witness for a subcommittee hearing on the government’s response to the pandemic, but was denied. Hollander said the panel was informed b... |
11156 | A Ray of Hope for Patients With Malignant Brain Tumors | An image from the Cleveland Clinic website promoting the NeuroBlate deviceAs the musical King of Siam might have said, this article is a “puzzlement.” Written more in the style of an opinion piece, and by a neurosurgeon at the Cleveland Clinic whose website states that it was the “first” to test the technology promoted... | false | Cancer,Conflict of interest,Devices,U.S. News & World Report | As with a variety of other medical technologies on or coming to the market these days, costs — along with clinical evidence of their value — are always part of the decision-making calculus used by medical centers to purchase and offer them. An additional factor in such decisions is marketing, and how much, if any, of a... |
5249 | Maine directs much of emergency opioid money to treatment. | Maine has directed most of the first wave of federal emergency money to target the opioid crisis on treatment, according to an Associated Press analysis, similar to other states that have not expanded Medicaid. | true | Addiction treatment, Health, Paul LePage, Medicaid, Maine | States are taking very different approaches to spending their initial allotments under the 21st Century Cures Act grant program, according to data the AP obtained through a federal Freedom of Information Act request. Seven states that expanded Medicaid under President Obama’s health overhaul directed less to treatment ... |
11394 | Zap or Chill? Targeting Fat Without Surgery | This story does a solid job describing two newish treatments purported to dissolve targeted fat–the Zeltiq cooling system and the Zerona laser. The story manages to deliver the most important facts while maintaining some tongue-in-cheek distance. This is, after all, a purely cosmetic procedure for people bothered more ... | true | "The story states the price for the Zerona device: $1,700 to $3,800 for six sessions. The price of Zeltiq is also reported but is not as clear: We learn only that one doctor charges ""$700 per spot""–but not how many treatments are provided or needed, what constitues as ""spot,"" and so on. The story duly reports that ... | |
9247 | First human clinical trial for nicotinamide riboside | This news release describes a 12-person safety trial of a nicotinamide riboside (NR), a dietary supplement that has been found to boost a coenzyme called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), which declines in humans as they age. The news release deserves credit for pointing out researchers’ financial conflicts. It... | false | dietary supplement,nicotinamide riboside,University of Iowa Health Care | The news release does not discuss costs. A 30-day supply, consisting of 60 125-mg tablets, is available on Amazon for $45.99, or $1.53 per day. There is just one manufacturer — ChromaDex — licensing the patented product to various companies, which package and sell it under their own labels. As a result, there is no rea... |
7735 | French army to help in effort to stop swine fever at Belgian border. | The French army will provide logistical support to hunters tasked with culling wild boar in a border zone next to Belgium, as France tries to prevent an outbreak of a virulent swine disease, its agriculture minister said on Friday. | true | Health News | France has been on alert for African swine fever since the virus was confirmed in September among wild boar in neighboring Belgium. The disease, harmless for humans, is often deadly for pigs, and outbreaks in eastern Europe and China have disrupted the pork industry there. After the virus was found this month in wild b... |
7230 | Governor says there’s less of him to hate: He lost 50 pounds. | Gov. Paul LePage says he had weight loss surgery and jokes now “there’s 50 less pounds of me to hate.” | true | Weight loss surgery, Paul LePage, Chris Christie, Health, Portland, Maine | The fiery Republican revealed the bariatric surgery on Wednesday on Portland-based WLOB-FM. He said he underwent the procedure on Sept. 29 and returned to work the next day. LePage, 68, was spurred to action after his doctor told him he needed to lose weight to avoid diabetes. He said he now weighs about 200 pounds and... |
41207 | In 2013, US children got 46 vaccines and the autism rate was 1 in 88. | US children were recommended to get around 13 vaccines, which involved about 53 doses, in 2013. In 2012, 1 in 69 were estimated to have autism disorders and in 2014, it was 1 in 59 (we found no figures for 2013). | mixture | online | In 2008, US children got 36 vaccines and the autism rate was 1 in 150. US children were recommended to get around 13 vaccines, which involved about 39 doses, in 2008. It was estimated that about 1 in 88 children has autism disorders. In 2013, US children got 46 vaccines and the autism rate was 1 in 88. US children were... |
41808 | There is some concern that the rise in autism is the result of the preservatives that are in our vaccines. | At a town hall event on Dec. 11, Rep.-elect Mark Green of Tennessee inaccurately claimed that vaccine preservatives might cause autism. He also repeated an unsubstantiated claim that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “fraudulently managed” data that showed a link between vaccinations and autism. | false | autism, CDC, vaccines, | At a town hall event on Dec. 11, Rep.-elect Mark Green of Tennessee inaccurately claimed that vaccine preservatives might cause autism. He also repeated an unsubstantiated claim that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “fraudulently managed” data that showed a link between vaccinations and autism.Both of the... |
9511 | Roche's Pricey New Breast-Cancer Combo Barely Beats Old Drug | The latest result on Roche’s new combo therapy for breast cancer occurs as a disappointment to investors, though it is one that’s unsurprising to medical researchers. This Bloomberg article receives high marks for reporting the cost, harms and perhaps negligible benefit of the new treatment which combines a newer drug ... | true | Bloomberg,breast cancer,Herceptin,Perjeta | We are told the new combo treatment will double the monthly costs of just Herceptin from $6,100 to $12,200. Though the benefit of the combo treatment is more pronounced for high-risk patients than low-risk patients, the article correctly points out that the 1 percentage point of improvement in the proportion of women w... |
17590 | Whether the Amendment passes or not, the medical use of marijuana is a federal criminal offense. | "There are a lot of talking points about medical marijuana being passed around in Florida, but one immutable fact underlies the pro- and anti-marijuana lobbies: The federal government considers cannabis an illegal drug by law. Whether that’s the way it should be depends on your point of view. Proponents point to curren... | true | Criminal Justice, Drugs, Health Care, States, Florida, Marijuana, Pam Bondi, | "Almost half the nation has reefer madness these days, with 20 states having passed laws allowing medical marijuana, or outright decriminalizing it. But the office of Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi suggests making it crystal clear to voters that even if a proposed constitutional amendment legalizing cannabis for me... |
33072 | A Denver man murdered a woman whose behavior was inspired by the #WasteHisTime hashtag on Twitter. | Prior to the #WasteHisTime2016 murder yarn, NotAllowedTo published claims that Meek Mill was the son of Martin Luther King, Jr., that Americans petitioned to replace the Stars and Stripes with a rainbow gay pride flag, and that a Colorado McDonald’s added a weed-smoking section. | false | Junk News, #wastehistime, #wastehistime2016, black twitter | In early January 2016, the hashtag #WasteHisTime or #WasteHisTime2016 unified a tongue-in-cheek conversation (primarily on Black Twitter) about creative ways to mislead men with whom users weren’t interested pursuing romantically; on 9 January 2016, the web site NotAllowedTo published an article titled “Man Kills His D... |
7787 | WHO confirms case of yellow fever in Netherlands, says risk low. | A case of yellow fever, an acute and contagious mosquito-borne viral disease, has been reported in a man in the Netherlands who recently traveled to Gambia and Senegal, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday. | true | Health News | The risk of further spread of the disease in the Netherlands is very low, the WHO said, in part because the virus is carried by types of mosquito rarely seen in northern Europe. There have been no other reports of confirmed yellow fever cases from Senegal, Gambia or the Netherlands at this time, it added, but internati... |
28271 | In 2018 or 2019, an Alabama court ordered a rape survivor named Jessica Stallings to allow her rapist to visit the children who were born to them. | "What's true: As of June 2019, Lenion Richard Barnett has court-ordered rights to temporary, limited, supervised visitation of two boys described in a divorce settlement as being ""born to"" Barnett. His ex-wife, Jessica Stallings, conceived the eldest boy when she was below the age of consent, meaning a statutory rape... | mixture | Politics | In June 2019, news outlets throughout the United States, and beyond, reported on the case of Jessica Stallings, a 32-year-old Alabama woman who claimed she was suffering the consequences of the state’s failure to legally prevent rapists from visiting or having custody over the children of their victims. On 12 June, for... |
5948 | Rhode Island gets $1.5M to fight diabetes, heart disease. | Rhode Island is getting a $1.5 million federal grant to help fight heart disease and diabetes. | true | Rhode Island, Heart disease, Health, Jack Reed, Diabetes | Democratic U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said in a statement Thursday the funding for the Rhode Island Department of Health from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be used to bolster existing efforts to prevent the diseases by residents’ efforts to lead healthier lives. That includes preventing and better m... |
34778 | Progressive Insurance chairman Peter Lewis has donated millions of dollars to the ACLU and liberal political causes. | Has Progressive Insurance chairman Peter Lewis donated millions of dollars to the ACLU and liberal political causes? | mixture | Business, aclu, donations, progressive | In 2009, Forbes magazine ranked Peter Lewis at #366 on its list of the richest Americans, pegging his net worth at just over $1 billion. Lewis acquired his wealth primarily through his stewardship of Cleveland-based Progressive Insurance, a company co-founded by his father in 1937. When he assumed the position of CEO o... |
10477 | Two Parkinson’s Drugs Shown To Increase Heart-Valve Risk | There is conflicting evidence on whether the drugs pergolide and cabergoline significantly increase the risk of heart valve disease among Parkinson’s patients. Most previous studies (but not all) report an increased risk. The pathological features of the valve disease are disturbingly similar to those observed in the l... | false | The news story provides no information on the costs of using these drugs or alternative medicines. The news article does not quantify the potential benefits of treatment with these two Parkinson’s drugs, instead describing them only in general terms. A little more information – a risk/benefit tally – might help readers... | |
29134 | The ingredients of two popular plant-based burgers, Impossible Burgers and Beyond Meat burgers, are indistinguishable from dog food. | What's true: Impossible and Beyond Meat Burgers share some ingredients with at least one brand of vegan, grain-free dog food selected for the comparison. What's false: The purported similarity between the three ingredient lists is overstated. | false | Food | In late June, 2019, University of California-Davis Professor Frank Mitloehner tweeted the ingredient list of three food items, two of which were popular plant-based burgers and one of which was “premium dog food”: Trivia quiz: following are the ingredients of three food/feed items. Two of them are fake burgers (namely ... |
9231 | Probiotics improve cognition in Alzheimer's patients | This news release describes the results of a randomized controlled trial that examined the effects of milk supplemented with probiotic bacteria on cognitive function and metabolic status (the whole range of biochemical processes that occur within the body) in individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. Fifty-two men and wome... | false | Alzheimer's disease,Fronteirs,Probiotics | The cost of the intervention isn’t mentioned, and there’s no assessment of how the cost might compare with other medications prescribed to treat the cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. It should also be noted that this intervention, if it were available to purchase, would likely be a long-term, continual investm... |
30885 | Hundreds of papers published in 2017 prove that global warming is a myth. | Because almost none of the papers cited actually support the argument that global warming is a myth, we rank Delingpole’s loosely researched claim that 400 papers published in 2017 prove such to be false. | false | Science | On 24 October 2017, Breitbart.com’s James Delingpole published a story appearing to report that hundreds of scientific papers published in 2017 “prove” that global warming is a myth. This post followed Delingpole’s June 2017 clickbait success falsely alleging that 58 published papers proved the same thing. Both stories... |
37404 | "The presidential campaign for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) hosted a ""Bern the Witch"" event in 2016, complete with an illustration of Hillary Clinton being burned at the stake.." | 2016 ‘Bern the Witch’ Sanders Campaign Event | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | "On January 14 2020, Twitter user @TrinityMustache claimed that the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign hosted a “Bern the Witch” event attacking then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton:Bernie Sanders had a “Bern the Witch” event on his campaign web site complete with a poster of Hillary being burned at the sta... |
10104 | Saving Your Life: Modern Medical Miracles: Matt Lauer’s heart scan | TV anchor Matt Lauer, an asymptomatic 47 year old man with no history of diabetes, with normal blood pressure, borderline high cholesterol, and with a family history of heart disease (his 72 year old father had coronary artery bypass graft surgery) undergoes a heart scan on national TV. We learn that two of his arterie... | false | Does not specify what the costs are, which are entirely out-of-pocket since most insurance companies do not cover it. The cardiologist downplays cost saying that they have had “good luck” getting insurance companies to cover it. No estimates of benefit are provided. No information on harms is provided, which is a glari... | |
28083 | "A person can ""survive"" living on a diet of nothing but potatoes and butter." | What's true: Eating nothing but potatoes and butter, in sufficient quantities, could keep a person alive for an indeterminate period of time. What's false: Whether a person could remain healthy in the long term on such a dietary regimen would depend upon on other health factors. | true | Food | The idea that potatoes can be a catch-all form of sustenance for human beings has been popularized at various times by public campaigns and movies, but health experts are split on the potential impact of “surviving” on just one type of food. This claim has been widely circulated online in meme form, with the slight mod... |
37559 | A test for COVID-19 is mandatory for anyone seeking to donate blood. | Is There a COVID-19 ‘Loophole’ in Blood Donations? | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | For a brief period of time, a Twitter user’s admittedly “bold and brash” — but wrong — idea about a “loophole” allowing people more access to testing for COVID-19 got widespread traction on the platform.On March 9 2020, the user wrote, “If you don’t have insurance and can’t afford to take the $3,200 test for the virus ... |
6531 | After health scare, Seattle’s Dipoto getting back to normal. | Seattle Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto completed his morning routine Tuesday then headed out for a jog. It was only 3 ½ miles, a minuscule total for a lifetime runner like Dipoto who used to take weekly jogs of 10 to 12 miles. | true | MLB, Baseball, Seattle Mariners, Health, Jerry Dipoto | But it was the first time he had run more than mile without stopping since he was hospitalized during the baseball winter meetings in December with blood clots in his lungs. “It used to be something for all my life I enjoyed doing and gives you a chance to clear your mind, gives you some semblance of shape and for a co... |
1341 | EU proposes joint studies to speed acceptance of new medicine. | The European Commission proposed on Wednesday joint clinical assessments to determine whether approved new drugs and medical devices offer value for money and should be prescribed for patients within national healthcare systems. | true | Health News | The joint action, set to take more than three years to enter into force, would replace a largely national approach to health technology assessment (HTA) that duplicates work, limits transparency and impedes market access for innovation. The Commission’s plans aim to make better use of available resources, to have a con... |
10534 | Gastric Bypass May Help Obese Teens | "The content of this television segment is generally accurate. A small study suggests that obese, diabetic teens can benefit significantly from gastric bypass surgery. It correctly says that this is an important finding for a condition that is serious and very hard to treat. It also indicates the surgery is controversi... | false | "The story does not report the costs of gastric bypass surgery. $20,000 is a figure commonly cited. The report says little more than that in the small study diabetes was ""reversed, disappearing in almost [all]"" of the obese teens who got the surgery. The overall impression this creates is accurate. But the term ""rev... | |
30117 | "Thomas Daffron, Sen. Susan Collins' husband, is ""a lobbyist for a firm that has numerous connections to Russia and Russian oligarchs." | Other than the fact that Kavanaugh’s confirmation and Russian election interference have been a focus of interest for Republican opponents, it’s unclear how those two subjects are supposedly linked in some sinister way through Collins and her husband. | false | Politics, brett kavanaugh, russia | The rancorous, partisan fight over the confirmation of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh spilled over into the personal lives of senators. Senator Susan Collins of Maine was thought to be the one Republican who might break ranks with the GOP and vote against Kavanaugh’s nomination, but she drew heavy criticism... |
813 | Death toll from UK hospital listeria outbreak rises to five. | The number of people to die from a listeria outbreak in British hospitals has risen to five from three, Public Health England (PHE) said on Friday. | true | Health News | The agency said that since the outbreak it had reviewed earlier cases and established that one other death had also been linked to the infection, which is thought to stem from sandwiches and salads. One patient who had been seriously ill has also since died, taking the number to five. “To date, there have been no patie... |
26522 | Facebook post Says this poem about people staying home was written by Kathleen O’Mara in 1869. | Catherine O’Meara, a retired teacher and chaplain, published the poem on her blog on March 16, 2020. | false | Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts, | """History repeats itself,"" begins the introduction to a poem recently published on Facebook accounts like this one. The post claims that the poem was written in 1869 by Kathleen O’Mara and reprinted in 1918 during the 1918 influenza, sometimes called the Spanish flu. The poem describes life much like today: ""And peo... |
22467 | "Under the clear letter of the law, (Justice Clarence Thomas) must recuse himself"" from the case challenging the constitutionality of the health care law." | Rep. Anthony Weiner: Law clear that Justice Clarence Thomas must recuse himself from health care case | mixture | National, Ethics, Health Care, Supreme Court, Anthony Weiner, | "A recent Fox News interview of Rep. Anthony Weiner was compelling TV -- if you enjoy political sparring. The New York Democrat argued that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas must recuse himself from the case challenging the constitutionality of the health care law because his wife, Virginia, made more than $700,000... |
34866 | "The film ""Helltown"" is a genuine documentary about a teenager's mysterious disappearance, a cult, and a military mission gone wrong. " | "The Travel Channel's ""Helltown"" definitely includes a whole lot of fiction." | false | Horrors | In November 2019, we started receiving queries about a Travel Channel television “documentary” called “Helltown” that supposedly showed the strange goings-on in an abandoned town in Ohio. Among other things, this show claimed that this town was the site of a “cult compound shooting” that left 14 people dead in the 1960... |
9175 | Topical curcumin gel effective in treating burns and scalds | A case series review published in BioDiscovery follows the recovery of three patients after they are treated with topical curcumin gel. Curcumin is the active substance found in the common spice turmeric, which has been extensively studied in the past half century for its role in treating various conditions. For exampl... | false | burns,curcumin gel,Pensoft Publishers | Since there is no discussion of costs in the news release, we give it a Not Satisfactory rating here. A Google search reveals that curcumin gel is available for purchase, mostly in natural food stores and through alternative medicine websites. A 2-oz tub of “Curcumin Gel For Face And Body” from Omnicure sells for about... |
16242 | You cannot get (Ebola) from just riding on a plane or bus. | "Obama said, ""You cannot get (Ebola) from just riding on a plane or a bus."" He’s right in the sense that you can’t get it ""just"" from being on a plane or bus with someone who is infected. It would take additional steps: The infected person must be showing symptoms and you must have direct contact with that individu... | true | National, Ebola, Public Health, Transportation, Barack Obama, | "President Barack Obama has sought to assuage fears about Ebola in the face of panic and misinformation. In his Oct. 18 weekly address, he called on people to ""be guided by the science and ""remember the basic facts."" ""Ebola is actually a difficult disease to catch,"" Obama said. ""It's not transmitted through the a... |
8928 | Coronavirus worries have surgical masks flying off shelves in New York's Chinatown. | Teresa Zhan, a pharmacist in Manhattan’s Chinatown, had not seen protective face masks sell out in her 10 years as an employee until this week, when China’s coronavirus arrived in the United States just days before Lunar New Year celebrations. | true | Health News | More than a dozen pharmacies in the tiny district had run out of face masks or only had a few left on Friday. Pharmacists said hundreds of locals had rushed to buy masks for protection from the newly discovered coronavirus that has killed 26 people in China and infected at least 800 others, including a case in Chicago ... |
9388 | Roche's Tecentriq cocktail adds to lung cancer survival success | This article from Reuters is categorized under its “Health News” service, but in both content and reality is a “business and marketing” story about an incremental big pharma clinical trial of cancer immunotherapy drugs that closely follows the format, tone and conclusion of a Roche pharmaceutical news release. The head... | false | lung cancer | Not discussion of costs. Some estimates have put the monthly cost of Tecentriq alone at $12,500. Adding the three other drugs brings it to about This is essentially a data-free story, as noted above. How long does this drug cocktail help patients live compared to the other treatment groups? This critical question goes ... |
41310 | The antibiotics gentamicin sulfate and polymyxin b are in vaccines and can cause allergic reactions ranging from mild to life-threatening. | Traces of these antibiotics can end up in certain vaccines, but would only cause a reaction in someone severely allergic. | unproven | online | Beta-Propiolactone is in vaccines and is known to cause cancer, suspected gastrointestinal, liver, nerve and respiratory, skin and sense organ poison. It may be present in trace amounts of some vaccines. It is potentially carcinogenic, but only in much larger amounts than would be in a vaccine. The antibiotics gentamic... |
26646 | “Italy has decided not to treat their elderly for this virus.” | Italy, second only to China in the number of COVID-19 cases, hasn’t decided to stop treating elderly COVID-19 patients. But the elderly are a lower priority because they are less likely to survive, and hospitals are overwhelmed with coronavirus cases. | false | Public Health, Facebook Fact-checks, Coronavirus, Facebook posts, | "In Italy, beset by more cases of COVID-19 than any country but China, hospitals have been forced to make tough triage decisions and ration treatment. But that doesn’t mean the country decided to stop treating elderly coronavirus patients. A post on Facebook made that claim on March 14, 2020. ""Italy has decided not to... |
26637 | David A. Clarke Jr. Says coronavirus is just “the damn flu.” | In a barrage of tweets slamming the coronavirus response, Clarke said he was tired of erring on the side of caution since this is just “the damn flu.” That tweet was among several removed by Twitter, a platform Clarke now says he’s leaving. Coronavirus and the flu do have similarities in spread and symptoms, but ther... | false | Wisconsin, Coronavirus, David A. Clarke Jr., | "David A. Clarke, the outspoken former sheriff of Milwaukee County, says he is leaving Twitter. If that’s true, he sure went out with a bang. Clarke put the nation’s coronavirus response on blast with a barrage of tweets on March 15, 2020, some of which were later removed by Twitter. Among them: He urged people to ""go... |
24931 | In January, I outlined a plan to help revive our faltering economy, which formed the basis for a bipartisan stimulus package that passed the Congress. | Congress didn't pass Obama's economic plan | false | National, Economy, Stimulus, Barack Obama, | "With global financial markets shaken by the credit crisis, Barack Obama is promoting his ability to devise solutions for a troubled economy. In a Sept. 16 speech in Golden, Colo., Obama took credit for inspiring the economic stimulus package that Congress enacted and President Bush signed in February, saying its compo... |
9261 | Implanted device successfully treats central sleep apnea, study finds | In a small study published in The Lancet, a nerve-stimulating pacemaker was surgically implanted in patients already suffering from central sleep apnea. The 151 patients were randomly assigned to either an activated device (68) or to a control group (73) whose device remained inactive. After six months, a little more ... | mixture | Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center,Sleep apnea | There was no mention of cost. Surgery to implant a device is likely to be quite costly and it will require maintenance. We were glad to see absolute numbers and not just percentages used to quantify the benefits of the study. “At the six month evaluation, the device reduced CSA events per hour by half or more for 35 of... |
36371 | "Alabama's abortion ban includes ""tacked on"" language enabling the prosecution of people who report a rape if the accused is not found guilty." | Does the Alabama Abortion Ban Have a ‘False Rape’ Reporting Clause? | mixture | Fact Checks, Politics | Four days before the Alabama Senate voted to pass a near-total ban on abortion in Alabama, a Facebook screenshot by act.tv of two tweets (archived here) claimed that the legislation included a clause enabling imprisoning those reporting rapes in the state if the accused was not found guilty:A tweet at the bottom by Ada... |
2005 | Teen substance abuse on rise over past 3 years: study. | Substance abuse has trended upward among American teens over the past three years after a decade of declines, according to a report issued on Wednesday by the Partnership at Drugfree.org. | true | Health News | It said marijuana and ecstasy use among teens shows marked increases while attitudes toward alcohol use have become more relaxed. The study, sponsored by MetLife Foundation and the 22nd in an annual series, found that between 2008 and 2010 teens who said they had used marijuana in the past year climbed to 39 percent fr... |
10491 | Device breathes new life into sleep apnea sufferer | This article on one woman’s successful diagnosis and treatment for sleep apnea is an example of a local newspaper feature whose main benefit is to raise awareness of a little-understood condition. The article accomplishes this. But the article falls far short of journalistic best practices in several significant ways: ... | false | "The article makes no mention of the costs of the testing for sleep apnea, the CPAP device itself or the continuing costs of operation. All are considerable. The article does not indicate whether any of the costs are covered by insurance or Medicare. The article makes no attempt to quantify the benefits of treatment ge... | |
23317 | "Florida seniors are exempt"" from losing Medicare Advantage under the federal health care bill." | George Pataki says Florida seniors get 'Gator Aid' to protect their Medicare Advantage | false | Medicare, Florida, George Pataki, | "Did Florida seniors get a deal dubbed ""Gator Aid"" that protected their Medicare Advantage unlike the rest of the nation? That's the case, according to former New York Gov. George Pataki, a Republican, who is now chairman of Revere America, an organization that aims to repeal the health care bill. Pataki announced hi... |
6110 | Trump orders faster issuance of air pollution permits. | President Donald Trump prodded federal regulators Thursday to quicken processing of air quality permits for businesses, saying it would boost economic growth and job creation but drawing criticism from environmentalists who described the move as a green light for polluters. | true | Clean Air Act, Air pollution, North America, Environment, Donald Trump, Air quality, Pollution | Among steps outlined in a White House memorandum to the Environmental Protection Agency were deadlines for acting on Clean Air Act permit applications, a search for changes in rules or procedures that would expedite permit decisions and giving state agencies greater authority to deal with air pollution. Trump said in a... |
7479 | Whistleblower: US failed to prepare, sought quick virus fix. | The Trump administration failed to prepare for the onslaught of the coronavirus, then sought a quick fix by trying to rush an unproven drug to patients, a senior government scientist alleged in a whistleblower complaint Tuesday. | true | U.S. News, AP Top News, Malaria, Health, General News, Politics, United Nations, Virus Outbreak, Donald Trump | Dr. Rick Bright, former director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, alleges he was reassigned to a lesser role because he resisted political pressure to allow widespread use of hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug pushed by President Donald Trump. He said the Trump administration wanted to “fl... |
9117 | Earlier blood testing for iron deficiency, anemia recommended for young women | This release reports on two separate studies, one combing the medical histories and records of more than 6,000 women, and another where 96 patients were surveyed. In the first study, researchers found that a significant number of young women had iron deficiency that wasn’t quite as severe as anemia. In the second study... | mixture | anemia,iron deficiency,Penn State | The release mentions that existing hemoglobin tests are affordable, but that screening for iron-deficiency below the level of anemia can be costly. This squeaks by as discussing “costs” but we wish figures had been offered. Is affordable $2 or $20? Is costly $100 or $500? Numbers would help readers better understand th... |
8964 | Nucleix Announces Positive Clinical Results for Lung EpiCheck in Early Detection of Lung Cancer | This release describes a preliminary study of a new proposed blood test for lung cancer that’s going to be presented at an upcoming scientific meeting. The release frames the test as a potentially useful screening tool for detecting cancer in people who seem otherwise healthy. However, that’s not the population that th... | false | lung cancer screening,Nucleix | There’s no discussion of cost. While we understand that this news release is touting a product in the early stage of development, it would still be beneficial to give readers some idea of the projected cost. The release touts this as a new screening tool to detect lung cancer, and the release provides numbers on both t... |
5266 | Romney calls for early detection, logging to stop wildfires. | As wildfires ravage the U.S. West, Republican Senate candidate Mitt Romney has called for more logging and a high-tech early detection system in a plan that was met with some skepticism. | true | Wildfires, Utah, Environment, Fires, Ryan Zinke, Mitt Romney, U.S. News | Romney, a candidate in Utah, said in an essay that more logging would thin out forests and clear dead timber so fires have less fuel. “If the devastation of wildfires were being caused by a foreign enemy rather than by natural causes, we would do and spend whatever it took to stop it,” he wrote. U.S. Interior Secretary... |
5085 | West African nation of Guinea reports Lassa fever death. | Authorities in Guinea announced the first death from Lassa fever in more than two decades Thursday, heightening anxiety about another hemorrhagic fever in the West African country where an Ebola epidemic first emerged. | true | Liberia, Health, Guinea, Africa, Epidemics, Conakry, West Africa, Hemorrhagic fever | The Ebola outbreak in late 2013 went on to kill more than 11,000 people in part because local authorities and the international community were slow to act when cases first popped up in a rural part of the deeply impoverished nation. In a government statement, health authorities confirmed that at least one person was de... |
3554 | Who says you can’t eat red meat? Food advice questioned anew. | So is red meat good or bad for you? If the answer were only that simple. | true | Nutrition, AP Top News, Health, General News, Lifestyle, Science, U.S. News | A team of international researchers recently rattled the nutrition world by saying there isn’t enough evidence to tell people to cut back on red or processed meat, seemingly contradicting advice from prominent health experts and groups including the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association. But the resear... |
8535 | Tokyo seeks shop shutdowns, Kyoto warns tourists away as coronavirus threatens Japan economy. | Metropolitan Tokyo asked some businesses to close and the ancient capital of Kyoto warned tourists to stay away as Japan battles a fast-spreading outbreak of the new coronavirus, amid fears the government’s measures are too little and too late. | true | Health News | Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike said she was targeting a range of businesses for shutdowns from Saturday during a month-long emergency through May 6, after resolving a feud with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s team over the extent of the closures. Koike had wanted to move sooner but Abe has resisted measures likely to put grea... |
10892 | Special Report: Life and death in the age of the bionic heart | This is a story about some of the new medical devices either on the market or in development to help people with serious heart conditions live longer. The story included several personal vignettes of individuals whose lives have been markedly improved with the technology. The story did a good job providing an interesti... | false | "There was no discussion of costs – a huge issue. We learn a portfolio manager’s projection of the size of the potential market, but not a word about costs to the individual or to society. The three patients interviewed had clear improvement in their quality of life. The story provided no data to assess how representat... | |
8309 | Exclusive: South Korea set to ship coronavirus testing kits to U.S. - source. | South Korea plans to send kits designed to run up to 600,000 coronavirus tests to the United States on Tuesday after an appeal from U.S. President Donald Trump, a Seoul official said. | true | Health News | Trump made the request in a telephone call with President Moon Jae-in on March 25, as the United States was grappling with fast-growing outbreaks in many states. South Korean companies have previously shipped test kits to U.S. cities including Los Angeles, but this would mark the first bulk order from the U.S. federal ... |
3374 | Tennessee county clinics offering free flu vaccinations. | Tennessee’s county health department clinics are offering flu vaccines at no charge. | true | General News, Nashville, Flu, Tennessee, Memphis, Public health | “It’s extremely important for young children, the elderly and pregnant women to receive a flu vaccine because they are at the most serious risk for illness or death from influenza,” Tennessee Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey said in a news release. She encouraged anyone who has not received a flu shot this season to ge... |
37533 | "The CDC had ""advanced knowledge"" of the COVID-19 outbreak in November 2019." | Did the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Have ‘Advance Knowledge’ of COVID-19? | false | Disinformation, Fact Checks | In mid-March 2020, as the United States continued to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, the anti-science blog Natural News posted a “story” pushing the claim that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the CDC, “appears to have had advanced knowledge” of the disease.The only source for the allegation is a ... |
31933 | President-elect Donald Trump has said he plans to cut Social Security benefits. | But we can tell you with certainty that he said he would. | false | Politics, 2016 presidential election, donald trump, donald trump quote | Among the toughest long-term challenges facing President-elect Donald Trump and the incoming 115th U.S. Congress is ensuring the continued viability of the Social Security and Medicare programs, both of which, according to reports by their boards of trustees, face insolvency by the year 2034. On 8 December 2016, Republ... |
26676 | Donald Trump Says Joe Biden “was in charge of the H1N1 Swine Flu epidemic which killed thousands of people. The response was one of the worst on record. Our response is one of the best, with fast action of border closings & a 78% Approval Rating, the highest on record. His was lowest! | Elements of Trump’s blame for the H1N1 pandemic that killed thousands of Americans are either wrong or misleading. Joe Biden was not in charge of the Obama administration’s H1N1 response. Trump overstated public confidence in his administration’s response to the coronavirus and downplayed confidence in the Obama admini... | false | Health Care, Public Health, Coronavirus, Donald Trump, | "President Donald Trump went on Twitter to applaud his administration’s response to the coronavirus and shift attention to another pandemic that happened when Joe Biden was vice president. The first U.S. case of a new H1N1 influenza virus (also called swine flu) was detected in April 2009, three months after the Obama ... |
30708 | Dr. Bandy Lee, who has warned the United States that Donald Trump is dangerously impaired, lacks a medical license. | It’s not about Mr. Trump as a person. We’re not insulting him. It’s simply about a public health threat he poses because of the power he now holds. | false | Medical, Campus Reform, daily caller, hal turner | On 10 January 2018, an article posted to the web site of white supremacist online radio host Hal Turner reported — falsely — that Dr. Bandy Lee, a renowned psychiatrist and violence expert at Yale University who has been vocal about her views on the deleterious societal effects of President Donald Trump’s mental state ... |
2756 | California college to offer non-approved meningitis vaccine. | Students at a California public university where meningococcal disease broke out in the fall will be offered a vaccine not approved for use in the United States, public health officials said on Friday. | true | Health News | Officials in the most populous U.S. state had sought permission from the federal government to use the European vaccine, which inoculates against a strain of the disease that has struck four students at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The outbreak, which resulted in a student having his feet amputated, is ... |
9952 | Chinese Herbs Equal to Tamiflu in Reducing H1N1 Fever: Study | This story was about a study comparing a Chinese herbal mixture to Tamiflu for the treatment of H1N1 flu (also called swine flu). Although it communicated the basics of the study well enough, it didn’t provide important information on costs or quantify the benefits with sufficient precision. It also lacked crucial cont... | mixture | health food claims,HealthDay | The story says the herb mixture is much less expensive than Tamiflu. But how much does Tamiflu (and the related physician visit) cost? Providing an actual price tag would have dispelled any uncertainty. Not enough information here. The story says that Tamiflu, the herb mixture, and the combination of the two “helped to... |
24765 | Teddy Roosevelt first called for (health care) reform nearly a century ago. | Obama invokes Republican icons on health care | true | National, Health Care, Barack Obama, | "Not content to emulate Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan, Republican icons for whom President Obama has expressed admiration in the past, Obama has aligned himself with a third GOP hero on the issue of health care. ""The problems we face today are a direct consequence of actions that we failed to take yesterday,"" Oba... |
4662 | Indiana resisting marijuana trend of neighboring states. | Indiana’s Republican Statehouse leaders are firmly against taking any steps toward following neighboring states in legalizing marijuana use during the upcoming legislative session. | true | Legislature, Indianapolis, Medical marijuana, General News, Recreational marijuana, Marijuana, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan | They might not be able to avoid talking about it during the 2020 election campaign. Indiana lawmakers have not seriously debated proposals such as allowing medical marijuana or removing the threat of jail time for possessing small amounts of the drug, even as recreational marijuana sales have won approval in Michigan a... |
2491 | Lure, variety of designer drugs is alarming, U.N. agency says. | A sharp rise in the variety of legal “designer drugs” with names that entice young people into thinking they pose no risk is alarming from a public health standpoint, the United Nations drugs agency said on Wednesday. | true | Health News | The number of new psychoactive substances - marketed as “designer drugs” and “legal highs” - as reported by member states jumped by more than 50 percent in less than three years to 251 by mid-2012, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime said. “This is an alarming drug problem - but the drugs are legal,” it said. “Sold open... |
31771 | Placing a raw, cut onion in contact with your foot overnight “purifies your blood”, removes “toxins”, and heals your body. | All things considered, the evidence presented to support this fairly outlandish notion is either false or misleading, and we cannot find any plausible mechanism for a raw cut onion stuffed in your sock to reduce any disease. | false | Medical, david avocado wolfe, onions, phosphoric acid | Like so many questionable bits of scientific misinformation, the claim that putting onions on your feet will do something unspecified that has to do with “toxins” is repeated with similar or identical language on many different web sites. One site that has given this concept undue attention is that of David ‘Avocado’ W... |
9884 | Taking meds before exposure cuts HIV risk for heterosexuals | This CNN story on two new studies of antiretroviral drugs for HIV prevention could have been improved. The cost of these drugs, whether in Africa or the United States, is a major issue that affects their viability as a prevention tool — a fact which the story didn’t touch on. And while the story suggests that the studi... | mixture | CNN | Although these drugs are available cheaply in developing countries (less than $1 per pill according to some estimates), even these modest costs can put them out of reach in the poorest countries where they are most needed. In the United States, the cost of daily treatment with Truvada (one of the medications studied wh... |
9752 | FDA approves tool for diagnosing dementia in a doctor’s office | There was more to like about this story than its 2-star score might suggest. There is substantial and thorough reporting about the problems with current approaches to diagnosing dementia, and the story demonstrates great legwork in seeking out the opinions of experts who have used the device that’s profiled in the piec... | false | Alzheimer's,Devices,Washington Post | Reporting on any new device, test or drug should include comments about cost. In this case a word or two about the cost of the device, whether or not it is reimbursable under commercial insurance plans or Medicare would have been helpful. There is a billing code used for payment by insurance companies and Medicare (CPT... |
6481 | California schools may allow medical cannabis on campuses. | California schools will get to decide if parents can administer medical marijuana to their children on school campuses. | true | Medical marijuana, General News, Legislation, Marijuana, California, Jerry Brown, Gavin Newsom | Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday he signed the legislation that reverses a current prohibition on cannabis within 1,000 feet of K-12 campuses. School districts will have the final say on whether they will allow it. The law will take effect Jan. 1. Newsom’s predecessor, fellow Democrat Jerry Brown, vetoed a similar... |
4378 | Minnesota State University astronomer ends a stellar career. | It was about 60 years ago that little Steven Kipp, 10 or 11 years old, directed his new Jason telescope at the stars above Fairfax County, Virginia. | true | Mankato, Virginia, Minnesota, Science, Astronomy | He looked in the eyepiece and, at first, was anything but overwhelmed. Seen through the small telescope his mother purchased for him, the stars were still just points of light. Not everything in the night sky, however, is a distant star. “Then you point it at one that’s a planet and that’s a very exciting thing to happ... |
10948 | New study finds adult fresh pear consumers had a lower body weight than non-pear consumers | This news release, issued by Edelman, a public relations firm, on behalf of the Pear Bureau Northwest, a pear marketing group, is a textbook example of how to conflate “correlation” with “cause and effect,” and confuse consumers all the way to the fruit aisle. The release describes results of an “analytic,” observation... | mixture | industry/commercial news releases,Weight loss | If consumers are encouraged to eat a pear a day it would be helpful to include even a ballpark cost. Fresh pears may be available in all markets year-round but the cost rises substantially when they have to be shipped long distances. The release, as noted above, says pear consumers had a lower body weight and were “35 ... |
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