Rates of drug overdose deaths decreased in the U.S. for the first time since the pandemic began, according to new federal data published Thursday.
Trump administration has taken actions to dismantle established public health infrastructure as part of its second-term agenda.
The deaths of over a million Americans during the pandemic allowed the Social Security program to save billions in future payments.
Partial CDC data suggest that influenza deaths may have already reached as high as 2% of deaths for the week ending on Feb. 1, also surpassing COVID-19 mortality nationwide which was holding at around 1.5%. More complete data is expected to be published Friday.
The landscape of COVID-19 mortality has evolved dramatically since the start of the pandemic. In 2023, the United States saw a substantial decline in COVID-19 deaths, with the virus moving from the fourth to the tenth leading cause of death in the country.
Five years after the pandemic began, Americans largely see COVID-19 through the rear-view mirror. Overall, they don’t feel the virus is nearly as much of a danger as they did in 2020. Still, deep political divides persist about the disease.
Five years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, public weariness and irresponsible politics are hampering an effective response to global infectious-disease outbreaks.
Experts say this is the worst flu season in the U.S. in more than a decade and cases are still trending up. Flu infections have reached the highest level since the winter of 2010 and 2011 when the swine flu swept across the nation, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows.
Another pandemic? Seasonal flu surpasses COVID-19 in U.S. deaths for the first time in 5 years. Experts urge flu vaccinations, hygiene practices, and public health measures.