American flags on half -staff to commemorate the million deaths from the coronavirus at the National Mall in Washington, DC, USA. Photo EFE/EPA/JIM LO SCALZO
The United States had more deaths above normal levels during the pandemic than most other rich countries, according to data released by the World Health Organization this month.
Deaths in the US are a 15% higher than normal, a number surpassed by only four other large countries in the same income bracket: Chile, Czech Republic, Poland and Romania.
Around the world, many poor and developing countries are worse off than richer ones, but deaths in the U.S. have risen more than in some countries with many fewer resourcesincluded Argentina and the Philippines.
Notes: Only countries with a population of over 10 million are included. The country’s income data is from the World Bank Atlas. Source of WHO
Throughout the pandemic, the U.S. and other wealthy countries had access to most life-saving supplies, such as vaccines, antiviral treatments, masks and testing kits.
While most wealthy countries also have a relatively older and weaker portion of their population, they also have access to policy and economic support.
Some of the countries with the highest mortality rates in the first two years of the pandemic are those in the upper-middle income group:
Ecuador, Mexico and Peru.
But many countries with the lowest incomes, including most countries in Africa, are not included in the charts because their data they are less reliable.
Some countries have had a harder time than others in accurately counting pandemic -related deaths.
WHO figures show how much.
The total number is more than double of the number of deaths in COVID-19 reported in official government estimates around the world.
In richer countries, the gap between reported deaths on COVID-19 and estimated total deaths above normal, probably due to the relatively smaller number of deaths, as well as existing infrastructure about notification of deaths.
But in countries with upper-middle-income and low- or lower-middle-income, the number of above-normal deaths estimated by the WHO is often several times higher than the number of reported deaths.
Around the world, around 15 million people more than expected, or 13%, died in the first two years of the pandemic.
These latest estimates from the WHO are what many scientists say is the most reliable indicator of full effect of the pandemic so far.
The numbers, often called excessive mortality, they measure the difference between the number of people who died in 2020 and 2021 and the number of people expected to die during that time if the pandemic had not occurred.
This includes those who died from COVID-19 without being diagnosed, as well as from others preventable diseases when hospitals are filled with virus patients.
In countries like Australia, China and Japan, the number of deaths in 2020 and 2021 estimated by WHO is actually lower than normal.
The WHO said that some countries may have seen a decrease in mortality from other causes as a result of COVID-19 control measures.
And because the WHO relies on population and death statistics reported on the part of government agencies, there may be some underestimate yourself in countries with poor reporting.
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Source: Clarin
