COVID-19 Pandemic

The Infodemic: Does the Virus Causing COVID-19 Bind to Hemoglobin?

A health worker is seen with blood samples during a testing of municipal workers from the Miraflores district of Lima for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Lima, Peru April 13, 2020.

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

Daily Debunk

Claim: SARS-CoV-2 binds to hemoglobin in red blood cells.

Verdict: Incorrect

Read the full story: "Claim that SARS-CoV-2 binds to hemoglobin in red blood cells unsupported and implausible," Health Feedback, April 16​.

Social Media Disinfo​

Screenshot

Circulating on social media: A list of bullet points supposedly shared by Johns Hopkins University summarizing best practice for avoiding the coronavirus.

Verdict: False

Read the full story at: "False claim: Johns Hopkins University shared bullet-point coronavirus tips" -- Reuters​

Factual Reads on Coronavirus

Coronavirus pandemic threatens to take crushing toll on rural areas, data show
Experts say the pandemic could accentuate the urban-rural divide in health measures, just as it has shined a light on other existing health disparities, killing disproportionate numbers of Black Americans, for example.
-- Stat, April 16