As the highly contagious omicron coronavirus variant spreads around the country, several states have mask mandates in place. Some social media users say they violate a set of research ethics dating back to World War II.
As evidence, a Jan. 3 Instagram post claims to show a section of the Nuremberg Code.
"In no case should a collective agreement or the consent of a community leader or any other authority, substitute for an individuals (sic) informed consent," it reads. "Leaders should be aware that mandating masks on the citizens of a nation and preventing their access to food, healthcare, transport or education if they don't comply, is a war crime."
The post accumulated more than 400 likes within a few days, and the claim has been shared across Facebook and Instagram.
But as independent fact-checking organizations have reported, it's wrong. The Nuremberg Code, which resulted from the prosecution of Nazis after World War II, does not mention face masks – and its provisions don't apply to mask mandates in the U.S.
“The claim that this violates the Nuremberg Code is 100% false," I. Glenn Cohen, deputy dean of the Harvard Law School, said in an email.
USA TODAY reached out to the Instagram user who shared the claim for comment.
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