Dr. Fauci didn’t say Americans should be “microchipped”

Over the course of the coronavirus outbreak, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has become a household name — and a frequent target of misinformation.   

PolitiFact has debunked several online claims about Fauci from people trying to discredit him, including the idea that he has a financial stake in a coronavirus vaccine and that he served on Microsoft’s board of directors. 

A new claim says Fauci wants to "microchip" Americans.

"Dr. Fauci says every American should be microchipped," one Facebook post says.

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)

There is no evidence to support this claim, or any of several other claims that prominent people are pushing to implant or inject microchips into people as a response to COVID-19. 

PolitiFact previously fact-checked a claim that Democrats were pushing to implant microchips in humans and found it to be false. We found no evidence of proposals or legislation that promoted the use of implanted microchips to fight COVID-19. 

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Other news outlets including FactCheck.org and Reuters have also debunked claims that philanthropist Bill Gates planned to use microchip implants to combat coronavirus.

This claim about microchips may have originated from a misinterpretation of a statement Gates made about possibly using "digital certificates" for health records on immunity. But he never said those certificates would be contained in microchips going into people. 

Gates’s interest in digital certificates may have also triggered false claims that he was pushing tracking bracelets and "invisible tattoos" to monitor Americans under lockdown.

Fauci, too, has spoken about digital certificates of immunity.

"You know, that’s possible," Fauci told CNN when asked if he could imagine a time where Americans carried certificates of immunity. "It’s one of those things that we talk about when we want to make sure that we know who the vulnerable people are and not. This is something that’s being discussed. I think it might actually have some merit under certain circumstances."

However, PolitiFact could find nothing to support the claim that Fauci said he wants every American microchipped.

We rate this claim False.