The US has recorded over 1 million more deaths than expected during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

This grim milestone comes from CDC data looking at “excess deaths associated with COVID-19.” Essentially, this figure is the difference between the actual numbers of deaths and the expected numbers of deaths in a given time frame.

The CDC has recorded 1,045,389 total excess deaths between February 1, 2020 – just before the first COVID-19 cases were reported in the US – to February 5, 2022. As of February 16, the CDC has recorded over 914,000 deaths directly attributed to COVID-19 on death certificates. The Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Dashboard puts the figure slightly higher at 928,519 deaths.

However, data on excess deaths provides a broad overview of the devastating loss of life that can be linked, both directly and indirectly, to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

A huge majority of the excess deaths can be directly attributed to COVID-19, but some are related to other conditions that have been exacerbated by the pandemic, mostly through overburdened health care systems. 

Unpicking all of these statistics can be tricky and it's unlikely the true scale of devastation caused by COVID-19 will be accurately attributed for some years to come. Some of the deaths will be diseases – from other respiratory infections to Alzheimer's disease – that have not received the necessary medical attention because hospitals are stretched for staff and beds due to pressure from COVID-19.

Another factor could be drug overdoses. Approximately 93,331 people died of drug overdoses in the US in 2020, a 30 percent rise from the year before the pandemic. Once again, it's very difficult to untangle whether these fatal overdoses can be attributed to the pandemic or not, but there is an obvious trend. 

If we take a step back and look at statistics on deaths attributed to COVID-19 on death certificates, it’s clear that COVID-19 has been especially devastating for older people. Around 74 percent of deaths occurred in people aged 65 and over, 21 percent of deaths were seen in people aged 45 to 64. Just 4 percent of deaths were in people aged under 45 — nevertheless, that 4 percent still represents 38,500 young Americans who lost their life due to this virus.