Abortion

Are people in Alabama who seek or get an abortion "thrown in prison for life," even if the pregnancy was a result of rape or incest? No, that's not true: There's no such law in Alabama. In 2019, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law a bill designed to essentially ban abortion in the state, except for when an abortion…

Did Tennessee and Missouri ban Plan B and other emergency contraceptive pills? No, that's not true: These states are not banning Plan B and other morning-after pills at the time of writing. Tennessee legislators passed a bill criminalizing certain actions by health professionals related to abortion-inducing pills, which are entirely different than emergency contraceptive pills. Meanwhile, discussions about Missouri's abortion…

Does the Netherlands have the lowest abortion rate in the world? No, that's not true: Although the Netherlands has a low abortion rate, with data showing that it has an estimated average annual rate of seven abortions per 1,000 women, it is not the lowest in the world. That title belongs to both Singapore and Switzerland, which, according to the…

Is former President Barack Obama a Muslim? No, that's not true: He has spoken frequently about being a Christian, not a Muslim. He gave speeches about his Christian faith before and during his eight-year presidency. The site that posted the image and claimed Obama's religion is Sunni Muslim usually shares memes, jokes and military-related posts. The claim appeared in a…

Did Colorado Gov. Jared Polis sign a bill that legalizes abortion up until the time of birth? Not exactly: Although Polis did sign HB22-1279, also known as the Reproductive Health Equity Act, or RHEA, that bill only codified the state's already existing reproductive rights into Colorado law and prevents state and local interference in reproductive measures such as abortion. Even…

Did California introduce a new bill that would allow mothers to kill their babies up to seven days after birth? No, that's not true: Under California State Assembly Bill 2223, a person would not have a license to kill (LTK) their baby for a week after they're born. The author of the bill suggested an amendment to clarify its immunity…

Is the Maryland General Assembly "about to vote" on a controversial pregnancy "freedom" bill? Not exactly: Maryland legislators proposed the Pregnant Person's Freedom Act of 2022, which is in committee, but at the time of writing the bill is not undergoing a final vote, as implied by a social media post. The claim was implied in a Facebook post (archived…

Does the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA) support Planned Parenthood and praise politicians who support pro-abortion measures? No, that's not true: GSUSA has repeatedly denied any partnership with Planned Parenthood, and there is no evidence that it has endorsed individual politicians. The claim, which has circulated since at least 2004 after one Texas Girl Scout council was associated with…

Did Josephine Myrtle Corbin have four legs, raise a family and die at 60? Yes, most of these facts about her in a post are fairly accurate -- she was a real person who lived from 1868 to 1928 and she died just a week before her 60th birthday of an infection -- but the photos paired with the caption…

Do the reported adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccines in the United States include the deaths of 2,433 babies, and is there another study that shows mRNA shots are not safe for pregnant women? No, that's not true: A Lead Stories analysis of the numbers found in the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), based on data through October 29, 2021,…