Health

Did a study published in January 2025 definitively establish a link between Ozempic and blindness, as was implied in a post on X? No, that's not true: The study was a small observational analysis of just nine patients that did not establish that the weight-loss drug caused blindness but instead found an association between the two. In other words, it…

Did an executive order signed by President Donald Trump reverse "the plastic straw ban"? No, that's not true: No such national "ban" was enacted by Congress. Trump's order counters policies of former President Joe Biden aimed at gradually phasing out single-use plastic items in the future, which affected only the operations of federal agencies. While some localities do have restrictions…

Does a video on TikTok authentically show a patient denied health care by a black female doctor because the man is wearing a MAGA hat? No, that's not true: The video appears to be a mirrored version of a video that originally appeared on a TikTok channel along with other skits. In a second version of the video the "doctor"…

Is the administration of President Donald Trump giving every adult in the United States $18,000? No, that's not true: As of February 7, 2025, the administration had made no such announcement. A post claiming it did directed viewers to a nongovernment website that did not mention any federal program passing out $18,000 checks. The claim appeared in a post on…

Did USAID fund financier and noted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein via the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Inc.? No, that's not true: A screenshot circulating online on social media actually lists "Jeffrey E Epstein," a different person who is a director at Kaiser Permanente. Several of his online profiles show he sometimes goes by the name of "Jeff Epstein" but his…

Is a study that claims vaccinated children have a 170 percent higher risk of autism reliable? No, that's not true: An infectious disease expert told Lead Stories the study is "just junk," saying the journal it was published in and the study design both lack credibility. Numerous large studies have found no proven link between vaccines and autism. The claim…

Did Elon Musk say two Boeing Starliner astronauts died in space, as a social media post implies? No, that's not true: Astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore were shown conducting a spacewalk nearly a month after the post -- and there's no record of Musk ever having made the statements attributed to him in the social media post. On February…

Did Denmark announce a "500% tariff on exports of Ozempic to the USA" in January 2025? No, that's not true: The claim derived from a parody post on LinkedIn that was not labeled as such. There was no such announcement on Danish government websites and no media outlets indexed by Google News reported on any such story. The claim originated…

Did the U.S. government spend or plan to spend $50 million exclusively on condoms in Gaza? No, that's not true: There's no evidence that the U.S. government intended to spend that much money just on condoms for the small territory. U.S. aid to Gaza is focused on humanitarian needs like food, medical supplies and other essential help. The U.S. State…

Does an article prove that the World Economic Forum "demanded" that the general public be "mass-vaccinated" twice a year with "long-acting mRNA injections"? No, that's not true: The organization told Lead Stories this was "entirely false." The article failed to offer any sources proving any such "demand" was made by the organization. It cited recordings of a conference panel in…