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REUTERS: Deaths in the United States from the new coronavirus topped 60,000 on Wednesday (April 29) and the outbreak will soon be more deadly than any flu season since 1967, according to a Reuters count.
The worst flu season in the United States in recent years was in 2017-2018, when more than 61,000 people died, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. USA
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The only deadliest flu seasons were in 1967 when about 100,000 Americans died, 1957 when 116,000 died and the 1918 Spanish flu when 675,000 died, according to the CDC.
The United States has the highest number of coronavirus deaths in the world and a daily average of 2,000 people died in April from the highly contagious respiratory disease COVID-19, according to a Reuters count.
The first death in the USA USA It was recorded on February 29, but recent evidence in California indicates that the first death may have been on February 6, with the virus circulating weeks earlier than previously thought.
On Tuesday, COVID-19 deaths in the United States eclipsed within a few months the 58,220 Americans killed during 16 years of US military involvement during the Vietnam War. The cases exceeded one million.
READ: The COVID-19 death toll in the US USA Outnumber Americans Killed in the Vietnam War as Cases Over 1 Million
The actual number of cases is believed to be higher, and state public health officials warn that the shortage of trained workers and materials has limited testing capacity.
The outbreak could take nearly 73,000 lives in the United States by August 4, compared to an April 22 forecast of more than 67,600, according to the University of Washington predictive model, often cited by White House officials.
In early March, the possibility that the coronavirus would kill more Americans than the flu was unthinkable for many politicians who downplayed the risk of the new virus.
Republican President Donald Trump tweeted on March 9: “So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing closes, life and the economy continue. There are currently 546 confirmed CoronaVirus cases, with 22 deaths. Think about it! “
On March 11, New York City Democrat Mayor Bill de Blasio told New Yorkers during a radio interview to eat at restaurants if they were not sick.
That same day, the leading American infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, warned Congress that the coronavirus was at least 10 times more lethal than seasonal flu.
There is no treatment or vaccine for coronavirus yet, while flu vaccines are widely available along with treatments.
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