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To be fair, that statistic is an indication that something does not add up. There are plenty of other countries with similar or less access to modern medicine (

To be fair, that statistic is an indication that something does not add up. There are plenty of other countries with similar or less access to modern medicine (modern ICUs, mRNA vaccines, etc.) due to sheer poverty that fared better, at least on paper. * Perhaps the way US counts covid death numbers overinflates them compared to other countries. * Perhaps the way other countries count covid death numbers underestimate them, if only for lack of proper testing. * Perhaps modern medicine is too successful in US, keeping a larger share of close-to-death people alive than in other countries. * Perhaps US population is too old / obese compared to other countries. * Perhaps US work habits lean workaholic, and people are not quarantining when they get cold/flu symptoms. * Perhaps air travel is too common in US, spreading the virus far and wide. * Perhaps wide-spread air conditioning promotes airborne virus propagation.

cratermoon 5y ago
A very simple explanation is that too many Americans were too selfish and insouciant and simply refused to wear masks, social distance, quarantine, submit to contact tracing, or really, do any of the things epidemiologists recommended to contain and mitigate the pandemic. This also covers your point "US work habits lean workaholic", which is more correctly put as "US companies don't offer paid sick leave and economic conditions for many in the US require them to go to work even when sick". Even a very poor country that did better about mitigation would fare better than the US under those circumstances.
- angelzen 5y ago
  > US companies don't offer paid sick leave and economic conditions for many in the US require them to go to work even when sick Indeed, this is a long standing major issue that might have turned the pandemic into a tragedy. I fear we are failing to learn the right lessons from the pandemic by focusing on internecine fights instead.

cratermoon 5y ago

A very simple explanation is that too many Americans were too selfish and insouciant and simply refused to wear masks, social distance, quarantine, submit to contact tracing, or really, do any of the things epidemiologists recommended to contain and mitigate the pandemic. This also covers your point "US work habits lean workaholic", which is more correctly put as "US companies don't offer paid sick leave and economic conditions for many in the US require them to go to work even when sick". Even a very poor country that did better about mitigation would fare better than the US under those circumstances.

angelzen 5y ago
> US companies don't offer paid sick leave and economic conditions for many in the US require them to go to work even when sick Indeed, this is a long standing major issue that might have turned the pandemic into a tragedy. I fear we are failing to learn the right lessons from the pandemic by focusing on internecine fights instead.