The COVID Pandemic at 2 Years (and counting...)

Today's Rogue Corner is just a compilation of statistics as we have officially reached the two-year anniversary of the WHO declaring Covid-19 as a global pandemic (March 11, 2020).  These stats have been compiled by Johns Hopkins University, taken data from State Department of Health's Websites as well as National Health Websites across the globe.  It is probably one of the most complete global looks at this pandemic that is available.

As of March 10, 2022, there have been just under 79.5 Million Positive Covid Tests in the United States.  In terms of comparing that number to the US population, it is the equivalent of just under 1 in 4 Americans that have tested positive.  Just over 965,000 Americans have died of Covid. That translate to about 1 in 340 Americans that have died from Covid.  In terms of the Death Rate from Covid, in the US about 1.2% of Covid cases in the US have resulted in death.  In comparison, during the Flu Pandemic of 1918-1920, 2.25% of all Flu cases in the US resulted in death.  However, it is important to keep in mind that many life-saving techniques available to Health care providers during Covid were not available in the Flu Pandemic a century ago.  Flu vaccines were not available until around 1960, ventilators were not as available in 1918 and many treatments for covid and flu did not exist in 1918.

The 965,000 deaths from Covid is the largest loss of life due to a pandemic in US history.  By comparison, the AIDS pandemic which has continued for over 40 years has killed over 700,000 Americans, and the 1918 Flu Pandemic killed an estimated 675,000 Americans.  Also keep in mind, the 965,000 deaths from Covid in the US is a floor estimate. Studies have suggested that the number of people infected with Covid is higher and the Death Toll from Covid could be as high as 1.2-1.3 million.  Over each of the last two years, Covid has been the third leading cause of death in the US, behind only Heart Disease and Cancer.

Globally, there are over 450 million positive Covid tests and over 6 million deaths from Covid.  This puts Covid as one of the 10 worst pandemics in World history in terms of loss of life.  The industrialized world has taken the biggest hit in this pandemic in terms of number of cases and number of deaths.

In terms of the states, the four largest states in terms of population (California, Texas, Florida, and New York) rank 1, 2, 3, and 4 in terms of number of cases and deaths.  However, if you look at the numbers in terms of number of positive tests and deaths per 100k people in each state, the numbers tell a different story.  Here is a brief look at states with the highest and lowest postive test rates and death rates in the country.

5 Highest State Overall Positive Test Percentages compared to State Population:
1. Rhode Island (33.76%)
2. Alaska (33.18%)
3. North Dakota (31.37%)
4. Tennessee (29.50%)
5. Utah (28.86%)

5 Lowest State Overall Positive Test Percentages compared to State Population:
46. Vermont (18.23%)
47. Maine (17.24%)
48. Hawaii (16.79%)
49. Maryland (16.64%)
50. Oregon (16.57%)

5 Highest State Death Rate Percentages per Population from Covid:
1. Mississippi (0.412%)
2. Arizona (0.386%)
3. Alabama (0.383%)
4. Oklahoma (0.380%)
5. New Jersey (0.372%)

5 Lowest State Death Rate Percentages per Population from Covid:
T-46. Washington (0.159%)
T-46. Maine (0.159%)
48. Utah (0.130%)
49. Vermont (0.097%)
50. Hawaii (0.096%)

In December of 2020, the first Covid Vaccines were made available to the Public (as of now, anyone over the age of 5 is eligible).  Here are the 5 Highest and 5 lowest Vaccinated States:
5 Highest Vaccinated states:
1. Rhode Island (81% of the population fully vaccinated)
2. Vermont (80% of the population fully vaccinated)
3. Maine (79% of the population fully vaccinated)
T-4. Connecticut, Hawaii, and Massachusetts (78% of the population fully vaccinated)

5 Lowest Vaccinated States:
T-46. Arkansas & Idaho (53% of the population fully vaccinated)
T-48. Wyoming and Mississippi (51% of the population fully vaccinated)
50. Alabama (50% of the population fully vaccinated)

Compared to the rest of the industrialized world, the United States is lagging in Vaccinations rates.  While the US Fully Vaccinated rates is about 65%, many European countries have vaccination rates ranging from 70-90%.  Canada's vaccination rate is above 80%, while Australia and New Zealand are both approaching 80%. Even several Latin American countries have vaccination rates above 70%, including Chile, Cuba, Brazil, Argentina, and Costa Rica.

How long this pandemic lasts is an unknown.  We are likely in the last stages of this pandemic as it appears to be heading into a more endemic state, but when that transition occurs is unknown.

There is more that I will say in the weeks ahead, but for now, the numbers continue to rise in terms of Covid cases and deaths.