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Coronavirus: The Infodemic - July 27


FILE PHOTO: A test tube labeled "COVID-19 Test positive" is seen in this illustration picture taken, March 10, 2021.
FILE PHOTO: A test tube labeled "COVID-19 Test positive" is seen in this illustration picture taken, March 10, 2021.

Fake news about the coronavirus can do real harm. Polygraph.info is spotlighting fact-checks from other reliable sources here​.

Daily Debunk

Claim: The U.S. government has conceded that polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, tests are not reliable for diagnosing COVID-19.

Verdict: False

Read the full story at: FactCheck.org

Social Media Disinfo

Screenshot
Screenshot

Circulating on social media: Claim that numbers reported to the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) as deaths following COVID-19 vaccinations prove the vaccines have killed people.

Verdict: Missing context

Read the full story at: Reuters

Factual Reads on Coronavirus

Why it’s still so hard to find treatments for early COVID-19
Scientists are learning surprising lessons about why promising drugs fail in clinical trials.
--ScienceNews, July 27

Spaniards put faith in COVID-19 vaccines even as cases surge
[T]he emphasis on vaccines as the salvation could also have contributed to Spain’s young letting down their guards as curfews and face mask requirements were lifted, just as the delta variant arrived. The result is that, despite its smooth vaccine rollout, Spain is currently one of Europe’s hot spots for new infections.
-- Associated Press, July 25

Vaccinated people make up 75% of recent COVID-19 cases in Singapore, but few fall ill
While the data shows that vaccines are highly effective in preventing severe cases, it also underscores the risk that even those inoculated could be contagious, so that inoculation alone may not suffice to halt transmission.
-- Reuters, July 23

Covid-19 kept families and caregivers out of hospitals. Some doctors think that shouldn’t happen again
[P]atients and many physicians say the more restrictive ongoing limits, like only allowing one visitor, are no longer justified and may actually be harming patients’ mental health and leading to worse outcomes.
-- Stat, July 20

Covid-19 global updates: Protests hit Athens and Paris over new coronavirus restrictions, vaccine mandates
Protests flared in France and Greece on Wednesday as residents angry over coronavirus curbs and vaccine mandates in both countries marched against new, stricter regulations that they say discriminate against people unwilling to be inoculated.
-- Washington Post (via MSN), July 15

Flu jab protects against some of the severe effects of COVID-19, including ICU admissions, sepsis and strokes
The flu vaccine may provide vital protection against COVID-19, new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), held online this year, concludes.
-- Medicalxpress.com, July 12

Covid-19 has destroyed 22 million jobs in advanced countries, says OECD
Job retention schemes have saved some 21 million jobs, but rich countries face the threat of rising long-term unemployment rates.
-- CNBC, July 7

Implications of the second wave of COVID-19 in India
Understanding why the second wave has been more dangerous than the first could help to identify the potential areas of diagnostics to target with future control strategies.
-- The Lancet, June 30

The Best Coronavirus Myth-Busting Collections

HealthCheck

COVID19 Infodemics Observatory

Agence France Presse

Snopes

BuzzFeed

Factcheck.org

Associated Press

Washington Post

TruthOrFiction

Mapping COVID-19 Casualties

Reliable Coronavirus Information

World Health Organization

U.S. Centers for Disease Control

Federation of American Scientists

Emergency Physicians

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine​

Pan American Health Organization

Google COVID‑19 Information & Resources

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