HIDDEN FIGURES

Study Finds 28,000 More Deaths Than in Prior Years in 11 Nations

The deaths in New York City from March 11 to April 18 were four times the normal amount, in all probability reflecting the limited available testing for the virus in the U.S.

According to a study of mortality data in 11 countries in March, at least 28,000 more people have died during the global pandemic—in France, the U.S., Indonesia, Turkey, Spain, and elsewhere—than the official COVID-19 death counts have reported, The New York Times reports. The totals—far more than those in previous years—include deaths from the novel coronavirus, as well as those from other causes, and the paper notes the numbers likely include individuals who could not be treated at overwhelmed hospitals. The new data shows that the deaths in New York City from March 11 to April 18 are four times the normal amount, in all probability reflecting the limited available testing for the virus in the U.S. Meanwhile, in Paris, more than twice the usual number of people have died each day, according to the report. The findings, according to the paper, undermine the theory that many victims of the virus may have soon died anyway. “Whatever number is reported on a given day is going to be a gross underestimate,” Tim Riffe, a demographer at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Germany, told the Times.