Health
Millions—not thousands—caught Covid last year
Doctors only report a small fraction of Covid infections through the NOIDs system. Read
Fact check
Covid-19 fact checks
This page brings together Full Fact’s fact checks on Covid-19, covering common claims, vaccine safety and efficacy, symptoms, treatments, government policies, and misinformation. We review evidence, correct errors, and monitor evolving science to help you make informed decisions.
The time on Boris Johnson’s watch does not prove his televised address wasn’t live
The watch appears upside down to the viewer, but shows 8pm. Read
Fact check
The government has awarded a contract to develop technology that proves you’ve recently had a negative Covid-19 test
This doesn’t mean that vaccination passports are planned. Read
Fact check
The needles in some syringes are supposed to ‘disappear’
Some syringes have a spring which retracts the needle once the dose is administered. Read
Fact check
Some on the Pfizer vaccine trials did get Bell’s palsy, but not more than we’d expect by chance
Four volunteers developed Bell’s palsy after getting a Covid-19 vaccine, but this doesn’t mean they are linked. Read
Fact check
There’s no evidence the Pfizer vaccine interferes with the placenta
One expert said the possibility was ‘vanishingly small’. Read
Fact check
Health
A post about coronavirus vaccines gets facts about their safety, ingredients, and legality wrong
Many of the claims in this post are common myths about the vaccine. Read
Fact check
Health
Putting outsourced contact tracing spend in context
Spend on contact tracing is a small part of Test and Trace. As of October, roughly the same amount had been spent on national and local authority tracing efforts. Read
Fact check
Health
Why are people not self-isolating?
Sir Keir Starmer and other Labour MPs claim that people are breaking the rules because they cannot afford to follow them, but this is not what the evidence says Read
Fact check
Cambridge Covid-19 test results don’t mean PCR tests are inaccurate
A higher ratio of false positives to true positives are expected when viral prevalence in the community drops. Read
Fact check
Evidence you can rely on
Fact checking claims made by politicians, public figures and viral online content can give you the full picture backed by the evidence.
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