Health

Did tech billionaire Elon Musk publish a post in defense of insurance companies, saying that those corporations can act "ruthlessly" because of their "duty to shareholders to maximize profits"? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no record of the purported post on Musk's X account. The fake screenshot of the entry appears to have originated from a meme website.…

Does President Joe Biden have the power to pardon Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson? No, that's not true: As of this writing, Mangione was jailed on state charges in Pennsylvania and was charged with murder by New York. The Constitution allows presidents to grant pardons only for federal crimes. The claim originated in…

Did Burger King's X account post "We don't snitch" in response to the alleged killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO being recognized by a McDonald's employee? No, that's not true: Burger King's public relations confirmed to Lead Stories that this post was made up. Also, the fake post contained the words "Retweets" and "Quote Tweets," words no longer used since Elon…

Did UnitedHealthcare list a job opening for the CEO position on LinkedIn shortly after former CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot? No, that's not true: A UnitedHealthcare communications director told Lead Stories that a screenshot the supposed job listing was "fake." Lead Stories did not find any evidence that this was an actual listing. As of December 9, 2024, there…

Was UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson about to testify against former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for insider trading before his death on December 4, 2024? No, that's not true: There's no evidence connecting his death to insider trading allegations involving Pelosi, nor has Pelosi been accused of such a crime. However, in May 2024, Thompson was named in an insider trading…

Does a video authentically show American Civil Liberties Union lawyer Chase Strangio arguing that 2-year-olds should receive gender-affirming medical interventions? No, that's not true: A video on social media misrepresents what he said about gender-affirming care, which is typically about juveniles and involves decisions made by doctors and families. His statement on CNN was specific to adolescents -- not toddlers.…

Did Elon Musk tweet that the "world would not be able to function" without CEOs after the murder of Brian Thompson, the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare Group? No, that's not true: The tweet is fake. Searches of Musk's X account and archived versions of it show the post was fabricated. A screenshot of the purported X post (archived here) appeared…

Was Samuel Hyde named as the suspect in the shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO? No, that's not true: Sam, or Samuel, Hyde is a comedian whose name and likeness have been the subject of internet memes associated with shootings since 2015. One of the photos of a person of interest released by the New York Police Department was edited to…

Does a video montage show how factories in India make artificial rice out of recycled plastic? No, that's not true: These videos are real, but what the factories are making has been misrepresented. Some video clips show plastic being recycled to make plastic pellets for use in other plastic products -- but not in food. Other video clips show the…

Did Dr. Anthony Fauci ever say that 72 mandatory childhood vaccines were never safety tested? No, that's not true: Fauci, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Lead Stories, "This claim is not true." Vaccines are carefully tested in multiple stages of clinical trials to ensure they are safe and effective before being approved…