Today marks two years since the World Health Organization officially declared COVID-19 a global pandemic.
According to new research, the estimated number of deaths in the US stands at 1.13 million since the pandemic hit. These numbers are far higher than the CDC’s estimate of the current total of reported deaths—above 960,000.
Findings released in another study led by Dr. Haidong Wang in The Lancet on Thursday revealed that the most ‘excess deaths’ during the pandemic were in the United States.
As the global economy plunged due to the pandemic, in his recent State of the Union address, President Joe Biden attempted to boost public morale, pushing Americans to return to work. In what appears to be a thinly-veiled attempt to bolster the economy, Biden said, “It’s time for America to get back to work and fill our great downtowns again with people.”
However, those abstaining from vaccinations remain a concern, with research showing that while 65% of the total population have taken their shots, a significant 16% still refuse to do so.
American citizens’ sentiments seem unclear as of now, caught between a sense of wariness of more restrictions and an urgency to return to a pre-pandemic-like way of life.