Five Republican senators have penned a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to ban travel to the U.S. from China because of a surge in “mystery” respiratory illnesses among children. But the letter selectively cites outdated information from the World Health Organization, and experts say the illnesses are likely due to known viruses and bacteria and aren’t unexpected.
Last summer saw the largest outbreak ever of mpox, the disease formerly known as monkeypox. Here, we provide an update on the disease, and explain what makes the outbreak unusual and how people can protect themselves.
Facing a declining stock market and criticism from Democrats, President Donald Trump and other officials have minimized the risks of the coronavirus to the U.S. and given inaccurate and misleading information about the new virus.
An outbreak of viral pneumonia that began in the central Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of 2019 has now sickened thousands, and led to more than 100 deaths. Here, we answer some key questions about what is known so far about the outbreak and the virus.
Multiple social media posts are spreading a bogus conspiracy theory about the deadly Wuhan virus. The posts falsely claim that the virus has been patented and a vaccine is already available. That’s not true; the patents the posts refer to pertain to different viruses.
A Facebook meme incorrectly blames the measles outbreak in the U.S. on immigrants from South America. The virus, however, was eliminated there in 2016. The recent uptick in measles cases is due to travelers returning from countries with outbreaks.
Over a nearly 18-hour Twitter spree, Darla Shine, the wife of Bill Shine, President Donald Trump’s deputy chief of staff for communications, made a series of false and misleading statements about measles and vaccines.
Rep. Mo Brooks and potential presidential hopeful Ben Carson both suggested a connection between illegal immigration and the spread of diseases such as measles in the United States.