COVID-19 Pandemic

The Infodemic: Fact Checking VA Secretary's Hydroxychloroquine Claim

FILE - Veterans Affairs Secretary nominee Robert Wilkie testifies during a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee nominations hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 27, 2018.

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

Daily Debunk

Robert Wilkie, the secretary of Veterans Affairs, holds a briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. November 8, 2019.

Claim: U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie said the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine has worked in stopping the progression of COVID-19 in "middle-age and younger veterans" who have the disease.

Verdict: False

Read the full story: "AP FACT CHECK: Veterans Affairs chief plugs unproven drug," Associated Press.​

Social Media Disinfo​

A screenshot of a Facebook post with a viral COVID-19 social media claim debunked by Reuters

Circulating on social media: The claim that COVID-19 stands for Certification of Vaccination Identification by Artificial Intelligence.

Verdict: False

Read the full story at: Reuters

Factual Reads on Coronavirus

Did the COVID-19 virus originate from a lab or nature? Examining the evidence for different hypotheses of the novel coronavirus’ origins
Taken together, the information presented here suggests that it is much more likely that SARS-CoV-2 was generated naturally and transmitted zoonotically, without any engineering or lab growth.
-- Health Feedback, April 24​