More than half a million people in the United States have died of COVID-19, according to Johns Hopkins University data – a devastating milestone one year after the start of the pandemic, which affected so many aspects of life across the country and around the world. The milestone comes as vaccination efforts launched across the country, but new variants continue to emerge, creating uncertainty about the future.
It has been 13 months since the United States confirmed its first case of the virus, but the death toll has only increased in recent months. More than 138,000 people have died of COVID-19 in the United States since January 1.
At 5 pm, the White House flag was lowered to half the mast and the bells of the National Cathedral began to ring. President biden comments delivered shortly afterwards, to commemorate the lives lost, Mr. Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and their wives made a moment of silence.
“500,000 lives lost to COVID-19. It’s an unfathomable number, but each represents a family that will never be whole again. For those who have lost loved ones: I don’t know what words can numb the pain, but I hope you find some comfort in to know that the nation suffers from you “, Mr. Biden tweeted.
Evan Vucci / AP
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease specialist, reflected on the number of victims in an interview on Monday at “CBS This Morning” “In late winter and early spring 2020, when we gave the number of 240,000 modeling, people thought we were being hyperbolic and a little bit alarmist, and clearly that was not the case, “he said. “This is a horrible milestone that we have now reached.”
As the number of victims continues to increase, the vaccination process has been criticized for being slow and disorganized. About six million vaccine doses were postponed because of the disastrous Winter storm. The delays affected all states, and thousands of vaccine appointments had to be canceled.
But even so, the number of people fully vaccinated against the virus is growing, and vaccines are proving to be highly effective in saving lives. As of Sunday, more than 19 million people have been fully vaccinated in the United States, according to the CDC, and more than 44 million others have received their first dose. A third Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be considered by the FDA for emergency use authorization on February 26.
The United States reported more COVID deaths than any other nation. More people have died from the virus in the past 13 months than from several of the other main causes that would normally pose the greatest threat to people in the country in non-pandemic circumstances. Compared to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 deaths outnumber 2019 deaths from influenza, pneumonia, suicide, diabetes, stroke and Alzheimer’s combined.
During the first six months of the pandemic, the average Life expectancy in the USA it decreased by one year.
The United States has also maintained a significant lead in the number of confirmed cases of the virus worldwide, with more than 28 million. Five states – California, Texas, Florida, New York and Illinois – have more reported cases combined than Brazil, the country with the third highest number of cases.
India, which also faces months of ongoing protests over new farm laws, has the second highest number of cases in the world, with just under 11 million cases – less than half the number in the US China, the first country hit by the pandemic , has less than 101,000 officially notified cases.
The economic impact was also devastating for millions of families. Several Business closed, millions of people were fired or dismissed, and students and teachers had to face the challenges of online learning.