Current Rate Of U.S. Pandemic Deaths Exceeds That Of All Other Wealthy Nations Combined

[appalachiablue]

- Daily Kos, Sept. 30, 2021.

Last week, the United States fell to last place in vaccination among G-7 nations. Until spring, the U.S. had been one of the leaders in vaccination rate, but as Democrats got vaccinated and vaccine hostility set in among 40% of Republicans, the increase in vaccinations in America slowed to a crawl. Even Japan, which had a vaccination rate of just 1% in May, and which has a high level of anti-vaccination sentiment going back decades, has moved ahead of the U.S. where, despite hopes that the delta wave might finally wake Republicans willingness to engage in public health has barely moved.

As a direct result of that low vaccination rate, the delta wave has been higher and more prolonged in the United States than in most other nations. And when it comes to COVID-19 deaths, American isn’t last. It’s first. In fact, not only are people dying in the U.S. at a rate higher than that in other wealthy nations, the number of deaths is exceeding all other G-7 nations combined.

As The Economist reports, in a pandemic of the unvaccinated, the low-vaccination rate has made the United States an outlier among wealthy nations. Across the E.U., the rate of excess deaths has dropped by 90% when compared to the peak of the pandemic. Britain, which has seen a persistent delta wave after “freedom day” ended most mask and social distancing requirements, is still down by 95% from their peak.

But the U.S. is down just 40% from the worst days of the mid-winter peak. If anyone doesn’t believe in American exceptionalism, they need to be corrected. Because Americans are exceptionally good at dying needlessly.

One of the things that makes The Economist’s numbers particularly interesting is that they’re not simply tallying the number of reported COVID-19 deaths each day. It's been clear almost from the beginning of the pandemic that such deaths were being underreported. States like Florida have gone to extraordinary lengths to revise their system of recording cause of death, making it difficult to know how accurate totals there may be. In several states, local coroners and medical examiners have admitted to leaving any mention of COVID-19 off of death certificates if it would “make the family uncomfortable.” Considering the high overlap between those opposed to the vaccine and those downplaying the threat of the virus, this is a formula for missing many, or even most, deaths in some areas...

-Read More,
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/9/30/2055191/-Current-rate-of-U-S-pandemic-deaths-exceeds-that-of-all-other-wealth-nations-combined



- Anti-vaccination protesters holding signs take part in a rally against Covid-19 vaccine mandates, in Santa Monica, California, Aug. 29, 2021.

[Tomconroy]

1. Britain has a high level of cases but they seem to do

A lot more testing over there so they are probably picking up a lot of asymptomatic cases. Their rate for hospitalizations and deaths is quite low.

[Eyeball_Kid]

2. GOP leaders cannot tell their base the Truth. So... there's more death...

because their base cannot handle the truth: that Trump created a false bravado around COVID vaccinations and pushed patriotic themes to keep them frothing at the mouth. Now they're in ICUs and ERs and going on ventilators as true believers in Trump's march toward fascism. They not only have the freedom to die of COVID, but they have the freedom to infect their families, neighbors, friends, and co-workers. It's the American way.