Coronavirus

Does a picture circulating on social media prove that Pfizer has a patent "for tracking vaccinated humans worldwide via microwave and graphene"? No, that's not true: The pictured document is not a Pfizer patent and it does not mention graphene or microwaves. Pfizer's office of media relations confirmed to Lead Stories that Pfizer has nothing to do with the patent,…

Do vaccines make children allergic to nuts? No, that's not true: There is no known association between childhood vaccines and these sorts of allergic reactions. An assistant professor of pediatrics in allergy and immunology called the notion "anti-vaccine rhetoric." The claim appeared in a post on Instagram published on February 14, 2023, with the description "A little Valentine's Day poetry…

Did Bill Gates create computer viruses and infect Microsoft computers to then sell antivirus software programs? No, that's not true: There's no evidence that either Gates or his company deliberately created and spread computer viruses, and a spokesperson from Gates' private office confirmed to Lead Stories that such a claim is false. Creeper, the first experimental self-replicating computer virus, was…

Does the United Kingdom forbid COVID boosters for healthy people? No, that's not true: A representative of the U.K. Health Security Agency (HSA) called the notion "nonsense." February 12, 2023, marked the end in the U.K. of the autumn booster campaign, which was the first time boosters were offered to everyone under 50 regardless of their health status. A separate…

Is ALC-0315, an ingredient in Pfizer's COVID vaccine, unsafe? No, that's not true: A claim to the contrary relies on a misunderstanding and misapplication of a safety data sheet, which was created in the context of occupational safety for those handling large amounts or high concentrations -- not the small amounts in a therapeutic product -- according to experts consulted…

Did Dr. Tom Shimabukuro, director of the Immunization Safety Office at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), admit COVID-19 vaccines are causing "debilitating illnesses"? No, that's not true: In the context of talking about unverified data from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) on COVID vaccine side effects, Shimabukuro acknowledged "reports of people experiencing long-lasting health problems,"…

Does having sex with men vaccinated for COVID-19 cause menstrual cycle problems in unvaccinated women and do Pfizer documents confirm this? No, that's not true: The vaccine elements can't be spread from person to person, either through intercourse or through general proximity, a process called "shedding," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website says. Also, Pfizer documents make…

Is Pfizer spelled backward -- Rezifp -- the god of the plague and the underworld? No, that's not true: Rezifp has no meaning. The god of the underworld that social media posts are referring to is spelled Resheph. Pfizer, Inc. is named after Charles Pfizer, who founded the biotech and pharmaceutical company, then named Charles Pfizer & Company, in 1849.…

Did Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel admit that the company produced 100,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses in 2019 before the pandemic began? No, that's not true: A video snippet shared to social media does not make it clear Bancel is saying his company had manufactured 100,000 vaccines for all diseases in 2019, not those targeting SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 --…

Did the government of Thailand announce plans to cancel COVID-19 vaccine contracts with Pfizer-BioNTech after a suspected connection between the Pfizer vaccine and Princess Bajrakitiyabha's December 2022 collapse was established? No, that's not true: An official from Thailand's National Vaccine Institute told the Associated Press on February 7, 2023, that the country does not intend to reconsider its contract with…

Does a new paper published in BMJ Medicine show that the COVID vaccine causes five times more myocarditis than the COVID virus and 10 times more in young people? No, that's not true: One of the study's authors told Lead Stories in a February 6, 2023, email that it's "an incorrect way to interpret our study." The paper only shows…

Do pandemics happen every 100 years? No, that's not true: A post making the claim cherry-picks disease outbreaks, excluding obvious examples. It also misrepresents basic facts about the pandemics it does list, including the years in which the outbreaks began. The claim appeared in an Instagram post (archived here) published January 20, 2023. It included a short slideshow of images…

Does a 2020 study published before the approval of any COVID-19 vaccine prove the existence of a conspiracy to burn chicken farms to prevent populations from getting access to eggs that allegedly can protect from COVID? No, that's not true: The study and its conclusions have been significantly misinterpreted, and there is no evidence that eating commercially available eggs affects…

Does a study released in early 2023 provide conclusive proof that vitamin D greatly reduces the risk of being admitted to a hospital's intensive care unit due to COVID-19? No, that's not true: While vitamin D is known to have a role in the body's immune response, there is "no clear picture of how or if vitamin D should be…

Is the same RNA technology found in COVID-19 shots now being added to chicken feed, causing the poultry that eats it to have fertility problems? No, that's not true: "Commercial feed manufacturers are not adding RNA to chicken feed," a spokesperson for the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association told Lead Stories. Amid an avian flu outbreak that has resulted in…

Has an international blood bank called Safe Blood Donation been opened in at least 16 countries to offer "pure blood," free of COVID-19 vaccines? No, that's not true: A disclaimer on the company's website says the Safe Blood Donation blood bank is not currently in operation and does not grant access to unvaccinated blood. Rather, the company offers a paid…

Did a peer-reviewed study find that at least 217,000 Americans have died after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine? No, that's not true: A published study that suggested "the total number of fatalities due to COVID-19 inoculation may be as high as 278,000" has been flagged by the journal's editorial board for making "unsubstantiated" claims and for possibly violating standards of peer…

Did celebrities call for a "total Hollywood strike" until everyone is vaccinated against COVID-19? No, that's not true: The claim, posted by a prolific publisher of fake news, is based on a fake tweet purportedly from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. An Academy representative told Lead Stories it is not their tweet. The claim appeared in an…

Did the U.S. government say that 5G causes COVID-19? No, that's not true: The study cited by the article making the claim was retracted several years earlier. The Journal of Biological Regulators and Homeostatic Agents made the retraction following "a thorough investigation ... as it showed evidence of substantial manipulation of the peer review." The claim appeared in an article…

Does a collection of video clips show people "dropping suddenly" because of the COVID vaccine? No, that's not true: Almost all of the clips in a post making that implication predate the vaccine, meaning there is no way the people seen stumbling or fainting in the videos did so as a result of the shot. The claim appeared in a…