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U.S. COVID-19 Deaths Surpass 700,000

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 22: (L-R) U.S. President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and husband Doug Emhoff participate in a moment of silence at sundown in the South Portico of the White House February 22, 2021 in Washington, DC. The four held a candlelight ceremony to mark the more than 500,000 lives lost in the U.S. to COVID-19 since the pandemic hit. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The U.S. COVID-19 death toll hit 700,000 on Friday.

The country saw 600,000 COVID deaths back in June when daily deaths were at an all-time low of less than 400 a day as COVID-19 vaccines became widely available to all Americans.

Three months later, however, the country has quickly added another 100,000 deaths to the total, as deaths have averaged higher than 2,000 per day.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 56% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, with over 65% having received at least the first dose.

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Most of the current deaths are coming from those who are unvaccinated.

The U.S. has started to administer boosters shots for those who are either 65 and older or those at high risk of severe symptoms.

“Today I got my COVID-19 booster shot—and just like my first and second dose, it was safe and easy,” President Joe Biden, 78, tweeted last month. “Get vaccinated. Together, can we save lives and beat this virus.”

Dongyoon Shin