The US death toll from COVID-19 topped 800,000 on Tuesday, The Associated Press reported, citing figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
The number is about equal to the population of Atlanta and St. Louis combined, or Minneapolis and Cleveland put together. It is roughly equivalent to how many Americans die each year from heart disease or stroke.
The United States has the highest reported toll of any country. The US accounts for approximately 4% of the world’s population but about 15% of the 5.3 million known deaths from the coronavirus since the outbreak began in China two years ago.
A closely watched forecasting model from the University of Washington projects a total of over 880,000 reported deaths in the US by March 1.
About 200 million Americans are fully vaccinated, or just over 60% of the population.
When the vaccine was first rolled out, the country’s death toll stood at about 300,000. It hit 600,000 in mid-June and 700,000 on Oct. 1, noted AP.