Facts Matter: Biden says pandemic 'over'; experts don't agree

During a recent interview aired on "60 Minutes," President Joe Biden said the pandemic had ended.

"The pandemic is over. We still have a problem with COVID, we're still doing a lot of work on it, but the pandemic is over," Biden said. "If you notice, no one's wearing masks, everybody seems to be in pretty good shape."

Not so fast, according to FactCheck.org. Although the situation has improved, most experts would not declare the pandemic over. A daily average of nearly 400 people in the U.S. have died of COVID-19 in the first half of this month.

Some epidemiologists said it's hard to define when a pandemic has ended.

"There's not a standard definition out there," Bill Hanage, associate professor at Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told FactCheck. "Previous pandemics have 'ended' when people no longer count the fluctuations in cases as large enough to merit calling it such."

David Dowdy told FactCheck it's too early to say the pandemic is over.

"I'm not sure that anything has happened in the past month or two that would lead to us thinking that the pandemic is now over," he said. "If it were me, I'd like to wait until we get through the winter before making that call."

A White House official told CNN that Biden's comment doesn't change the administration's policy for dealing with the pandemic and there are no plans to lift the public health emergency, in place since January 2020.

Pence didn't attempt coup

Posts circulating on social media include comments from a candidate claiming former Vice President Mike Pence was responsible for a coup on Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol building.

"Mike Pence seized power over an existing president. He was not president. Donald Trump was still president at that moment," said Mark Finchem, a Republican candidate for Arizona secretary of state.

Finchem said Pence didn't have the authority to call for help during the insurrection.

"How long has he been ordering those folks around?" he asked. "Well, apparently from Jan. 6 to Jan. 20. Ladies and gentlemen, that's a coup."

But Pence's actions didn't amount to a coup, or any attempt to overthrow the government, according to PolitiFact.

"It is appropriate for the vice president, as a member of the National Security Council, to consult with the team about an unfolding crisis and make recommendations for how the various principals should use their delegated powers," Duke University political scientist Peter Feaver told PolitiFact.

In fact, what the vice president did was part of his job.

"Pence's actions that day fulfilled his oath to defend the U.S. Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic," Patrick Eddington, a senior fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute, told PolitiFact.

Germany still uses vaccines

Recent social media posts claim Germany has stopped using COVID-19 vaccines.

"BREAKING NEWS --- GERMANY HALTS ALL C19 VACCINES, THEY ARE UNSAFE AND NO LONGER RECOMMENDED !!" NO ONE CAN GET IT & the vaccine license has been put on pause!!," reads a tweet that was shared more than 6,000 times.

But this claim is false, according to The Associated Press. Germany has not stopped using the vaccines and is expected to issue updated booster shots to target recent strains.

"Germany has not banned or paused the COVID-19 vaccinations in Germany," Federal Ministry of Health representative Kira Nübel told the AP.

The post includes a video in which a man claims the German government passed a moratorium on vaccines.

But that video actually is from a fictional exercise called "BasisCamp.live," which took place last month in Berlin.

Banks can keep cash

A recent Facebook post said U.S. banks soon will have to give all their physical currency to the government as an electronic-only payment plan is initiated.

"We were told all the banks will soon begin to turn in their coins to the Gov't and will no longer be available to the public or to a business," the Sept. 13 post reads.

False, according to PolitiFact. The claim stems from out-of-context details about a planned instant payment program.

The Federal Reserve's payment program, called FedNow Service, is expected to begin next year. Customers of participating financial institutions will be able to access funds immediately, without waiting for the delay between when funds are deposited and when they are available.

But there is no government mandate for people to participate in the program and there is no evidence banks will have to give up all their cash.

• Bob Oswald is a veteran Chicago-area journalist and former news editor of the Elgin Courier-News. Contact him at boboswald33@gmail.com.