Does the little girl in a viral photo asking for prayers have coronavirus? No, that's not true. A photograph of a little girl with a tube in her nose holding a sign asking for prayers with the caption that she has coronavirus is fake -- it has been photoshopped and she is actually celebrating her last day of chemotherapy and…

Did Dr. Anthony Fauci say "There's no reason to be walking around with a mask?" Yes, but he said it in early March 2020, and much had changed by May. Federal health experts, including Dr. Fauci began recommending that Americans wear a mask in public on April 3, 2020. The video of Fauci's March 8, 2020, CBS interview was posted…

Is the COVID-19 death rate a mere '0.1%'? No, that's not true: The novel coronavirus death rate is about 1.3 percent, according to the most recent estimate by University of Washington researchers. It is much deadlier than the seasonal flu, which does have a 0.1 percent death rate, those researchers said. The claim appeared in a meme shared on Facebook…

Is it against the law for a business to require people to wear masks, do masks make you sick, and is COVID-19 no more deadly than the flu? No, none of that is true: The claims of a woman ranting outside a grocery store about the illegality of mandatory mask rules, the health risks associated with wearing a mask, and…

Did the Los Angeles County Director of Public Health -- a woman tasked with responding to COVID-19 and promoting good health -- actually appear unhealthy in a photo from a news briefing? No, that's not true: A photograph of Barbara Ferrer was digitally-altered to drain her of all color and make her look ill. The altered image originated on social…

Was Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer caught on camera violating mask and social-distancing and rules on on Mackinaw Island in May 2020? No, that's not true: The photo of the Democratic governor talking with two men was published in a 2018 news story -- nearly a year and a half before she imposed rules for Michigan residents to protect against the…

Did Bill Gates, Dr. Anthony Fauci and Big Pharma lose a massive U.S. Supreme Court case? No, that's not true: The billionaire philanthropist Gates, the immunologist Fauci, and the major pharmaceutical companies have not lost a major high court decision as claimed in articles and videos, which fail to cite the name of the case. The claim originated in an…

Has "the whole world" gotten the pathology of COVID-19 wrong -- that it's thrombosis, a blood-clotting problem, that should be treated with "antibiotics, antivirals, anti-inflammatories and anticoagulants" and not a viral infection that leads to a potentially lethal respiratory illness? No, this is not true. While there are microvascular thrombi identified in patients with COVID-19, according to a specialist at…

Does the constant use of a mask cause hypercapnia -- a buildup of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream? No, that's not true. As the COVID-19 outbreak continues, a false claim that wearing masks causes hypercapnia is going viral. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended wearing masks in public for anyone over the age of 2, unless they…

Is it true that for the first time in history "not one American died from the flu this year"? No, sadly, that's not true: Influenza continues to take lives. According to the mortality surveillance data culled by the National Center for Health Statistics, at least 8,048 deaths in the United States have been attributed to the flu in 2020. The…

Does a video showing a man standing up after being rolled on a gurney from an ambulance show how the media orchestrates a pandemic? No, that's not true: The video, which apparently was recorded in Russia, has not appeared in any media reports, although it has been shared around the world on social media to make the claim that the…

Do 5G waves penetrate red blood cells in the lungs, making them easy prey for COVID-19 to enter and cause oxygen starvation? No, that's not true: The main study used to support the claim is about Wi-Fi, not 5G signals. Scientists have proven that 5G broadband can't enter the body because skin protects the internal organs, and engineering experts point…

Did Chuck Norris die of coronavirus? No, that's not true. Hollywood legend Chuck Norris is not dead and there is no indication he contracted coronavirus, despite the claim that is going viral on Facebook. The 77-year-old action hero did not pass away from COVID-19 and the joke post even noted "However, after his minor inconvenience of death, Chuck has made…

Did the CDC issue guidelines ordering schools to make children over the age of 2 wear masks, forbidding children from sharing toys and requiring physical barriers in bathrooms -- all for schools to reopen amid the COVID-19 outbreak? No, that is not true. A claim labeled by one Facebook commentator as an "Orwellian developmental nightmare" does not accurately reflect the…

Is the U.S. survival rate for COVID-19 cases 99.983 percent? No, that's not true. The math does not add up. There are at least 95,000 confirmed deaths from COVID-19 and 1,610,000 confirmed cases in the United States as of May 21, 2020. If only .017 percent of those diagnosed cases died, the death toll would be about 27,370. A scientific…

Did a baby named Kyle survive heart surgery only to now suffer from COVID-19, as depicted in a social media post? No, that's not true: A photo purportedly showing the newborn was published in 2014, long before the novel coronavirus pandemic, and the infant's name is Cameron. The child is now almost 8 years old and his family is very…

Did House Democrats sneak into their $3 trillion stimulus bill tied to coronavirus relief a recess that would keep them out of having to work -- but with fully pay -- until July 21? No, that is not true. HR 6800, which passed the House on May 15, 2020, does not contain the word "recess." Speaker Nancy Pelosi would not…

Did Dr. Deborah Birx, the coronavirus response coordinator for the White House, have "a Freudian slip" and acknowledge that she actually works for billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates and the World Health Organization? No, that is not true: Birx, who appeared on CNN in April, did say the word "gates," but that was in reference to markers used for states to…

Did the Italian government call for the arrest of Bill Gates for "crimes against humanity"? No, this is not true. While one lone member of the Italian Parliament did attack Gates in a speech, the word "arrest" was never spoken and the Italian government did not call for the Microsoft co-founder's arrest. The claim appears in a video (archived here)…

Did Wuhan, China, go back on lockdown amid a second wave of new COVID-19 cases? No, that's not true: Wuhan, where the coronavirus outbreak began in late 2019, is not back on lockdown despite 15 new cases being found in the city's province. The government has taken the initiative to test all 11 million residents to avoid another large outbreak…