Coronavirus: The Infodemic - January 1

Daily Debunk Claim: “[V]accines are not safe during pregnancy … there’s no research on COVID vaccines during pregnancy because it's unethical to do so." While Moderna has advised male and female COVID-19 vaccine trial participants to abstain "from all activities that could result in pregnancy" — the exclusion of pregnant women from clinical research is not atypical as they are viewed to be medically complex, potentially complicating research studies.   Verdict: Misleading Read the full story at: USA Today Social Media Disinfo Circulating on social media: A social media post attributed to Rob Oswald, “a PhD in virology and immunology,” claims that positive COVID-19 samples sent to university labs found no SARS-CoV-2, but flu instead. It says that there is no such thing as COVID-19. Verdict: False Read the full story at: KHOU 11   Factual Reads on Coronavirus What We Know About the New U.K Variant of Coronavirus -- And What We Need To Find Out A new variant of the coronavirus is spreading rapidly in England and raising international alarms. Scientists say the variant is likely more contagious than previous versions of the virus. -- NPR, December 22 How gendered disinformation adapts to the context of Covid-19 -- European Federation of Journalists, December 21 EXPLAINER: Are new coronavirus strains cause for concern?​ -- The Associated Press, December 20 COVID vaccine race leaders likely won’t be only ones to reap huge payday Therapeutics and law expert lays out the economics of this drug development. -- The Harvard Gazette, December 17 Misting the White House between administrations won’t kill Covid-19 — and it could be harmful, experts say [P]rominent expert organizations are clear: misting or fogging disinfectants is not a good way to fight Covid-19. -- Stat, December 16 Behind Each of More Than 300,000 Lives Lost: A Name, a Caregiver, a Family, a Story More than 300,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the United States. -- Kaiser Health News, December 15 The coronavirus at 1: A year into the pandemic, what scientists know about how it spreads, infects, and sickens  The coronavirus behind the pandemic presents some vexing dualities. -- Stat, December 14 The US is about to begin the first big test of Covid-19 vaccine distribution What we can learn from the initial phase of vaccinating health care workers in the US. -- Vox, December 10 Despite promise, few in US adopting COVID-19 exposure apps Fewer than half of U.S. states and territories — 18 in total — have made such technology widely available. And according to a data analysis by The Associated Press, the vast majority of Americans in such locations haven’t activated the tool. -- Associated Press, December 6 Federal hospital data system falters at tracking pandemic A Science examination ... found the HHS data for three important values in Wisconsin hospitals—beds filled, intensive care unit (ICU) beds filled, and in-patients with COVID-19—often diverge dramatically from those collected by the other federal source, from state-supplied data, and from the apparent reality on the ground. -- Science, December 4 Inside China’s response to COVID Researchers and officials reveal how the pandemic has shifted the country’s scientific landscape and global reputation. -- Nature, December 2 The Covid-19 vaccines are a marvel of science. Here’s how we can make the best use of them It appears science may have found the Covid-19 pandemic’s off-ramp. -- Stat, December 2 Watch: Antibodies, immunity, and what they mean for Covid-19, explained The immune system is no wimp. When pathogens cause illness, it kicks into high gear. Cells work together to tag, kill and gobble up invaders as they fight the infection. -- Stat, May 5   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