The pandemic’s true death toll
Our daily estimate of excess deaths around the world
How many people have died because of the covid-19 pandemic? The answer depends both on the data available, and on how you define “because”. Many people who die while infected with SARS-CoV-2 are never tested for it, and do not enter the official totals. Conversely, some people whose deaths have been attributed to covid-19 had other ailments that might have ended their lives on a similar timeframe anyway. And what about people who died of preventable causes during the pandemic, because hospitals full of covid-19 patients could not treat them? If such cases count, they must be offset by deaths that did not occur but would have in normal times, such as those caused by flu or air pollution.
More from Graphic detail
Should euthanasia be allowed for those with mental illnesses?
Legislators and doctors are struggling to define who should have the right to die
An alternative look at the Trump-Harris debate, in five charts
We asked a linguist to assess the data
Two charts assess Donald Trump’s distinctive debate style
Johnson, our language columnist, compares Trump-speak with Harris-ese
Three charts show that America’s imports are booming
Here’s why that could spell trouble
What makes Europe so liveable?
Insights from the city liveability index
Why do Australians live so long?
A new study finds they far outlive people in other English-speaking countries