Right-Wing Lie of the Day 0009
"The CDC finally admits its COVID-19 test can’t tell the difference between the virus and the flu." -- Social media posts (as well as our very own Ron
"The Parrot" Lauzon)
The CDC recommended newer tests that are able to detect and differentiate between multiple infections, including influenza, over the previous PCR tests that could only detect COVID-19.
The implication of the lie is that the COVID-19 PCR tests would incorrectly identify the flu as COVID-19, which is false. The PCR tests could detect COVID-19 but not influenza, while the newer tests can detect COVID and influenza, among other things. The newer tests can also differentiate between the various infections detected, indicating exactly which was detected. The
PCR tests had no need for such differentiation because they were designed to detect only one infection.
More info:
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2022/jan/03/instagram-posts/cdc-didnt-say -its-covid-19-tests-cant-differentiat/
Jeff.
--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A46 2020/08/26 (Raspberry Pi/32)
* Origin: Cold War Computing BBS (1:387/26)
