With packed stadiums for sporting events and arenas for concerts, the world would indicate the pandemic is over. But it’s not. The United States of America has just passed 700,000 COVID-19 deaths.
Johns Hopkins University reveals the new number, citing America topped the number Friday. In June, America had 600,000 deaths, marking 100,000 deaths through the summer months.
“As our nation mourns the painful milestone of 700,000 American deaths due to Covid-19, we must not become numb to the sorrow,” President Joe Biden said in a statement Saturday. “On this day, and every day, we remember all those we have lost to this pandemic, and we pray for their loved ones left behind who are missing a piece of their soul.
“The astonishing death toll is yet another reminder of just how important it is to get vaccinated. The vaccines are safe, free, and easy — and we have made extraordinary progress in our fight against Covid-19 over the last eight months because of the vaccines,” Biden said. “More than three-quarters of all Americans age 12 and up have now received at least one vaccine dose — including nearly 94 percent of all seniors. Hundreds of thousands of families have been spared the unbearable loss that too many Americans have already endured during this pandemic.”
“If we had been more effective in our vaccination, then I think it’s fair to say, we could have prevented 90 percent of those deaths,” said Dr. David Dowdy, an infectious disease epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Dr. Dowdy also stated at least 70,000 of the last 100,000 deaths were unvaccinated people.
