Did the head of Bayer's pharmaceutical division admit the COVID-19 vaccines are gene therapy? No, that's not true: The comments made by Bayer's Stephan Oelrich were taken out of context. Speaking about innovation in the pharmaceutical industry, he said the COVID vaccines were an example of technological innovations that are paving the way for the public to trust future new…

Are COVID-19 vaccines experimental gene technology that is still under development? No, that's not true: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the United Kingdom says none of the vaccines authorized in the U.K. -- AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna -- are experimental. All have gone through a "thorough review of safety, quality and efficacy information from clinical trials"…

Did Japanese health ministry panels of experts add myocarditis to warning labels for COVID-19 vaccines? Yes, that's true, but they are not in "stark contrast" to the rest of the world. The addition of warnings about myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) and pericarditis (inflammation of the tissue surrounding the heart) to the Pfizer and Moderna labels in Japan on…

Did an article published by Forbes support the idea that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines directly modify DNA? Not exactly: Although the headline "Yes, The Vaccine Changes Your DNA. A Tiny Bit. That's A Good Thing," was posted on the website, the title of the article was changed shortly after its publication to better reflect the contents of the article. And while…

Is bathing in a mixture of borax, baking soda, "Indian healing clay" and Epsom salt a good way to "detox" the COVID-19 vaccine from your body? No, that's not true: There is no scientific evidence that bathing in a borax mixture will remove the vaccine from your body. Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine, told Lead Stories that…

Does a photo purportedly comparing pinewood from the early 1970s to pinewood from the early 2020s accurately describe genetically modified structural lumber used in 2021 versus wood from the 1970s? No, that's not true: These claims were made without substantial evidence, and a representative of the American Wood Council told Lead Stories that they are "patently false." These claims appeared…

Did the U.S. Supreme Court rule that the COVID-19 vaccine is unsafe? Did Dr. Anthony Fauci and "Big Pharma" lose a lawsuit to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others over the safety of COVID vaccine? No, neither of those are true: There has been no recent court proceeding, or ruling, from the Supreme Court stating that COVID vaccine is unsafe.…

Are COVID-19 vaccines rewriting patients' DNA, sneaking microchips into people's bodies and causing infertility? No, that's not true: The claims are made without citations to research or other evidence and are directly refuted by public health and medical experts in the relevant specialties. The claims originate in a video (archived here) posted on the BitChute account of WilParanormal on May…

Did Dr. Anthony Fauci's "project manager" confess to creating COVID-19? No, that's not true: The claim is based on an old interview with Dr. Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance, a global environmental health organization. The video that purportedly includes his admission only shows Daszak talking about coronavirus research; he says nothing about creating SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.…

Has Pfizer instructed male COVID-19 vaccine recipients to refrain from donating sperm, to wear condoms and/or be abstinent for at least 28 days after getting a shot? No, that's not true: A screenshot used as the basis of the claim was taken from a lengthy protocol that was designed at the start of a clinical trial, approved on April 17,…