Health
Why the US has the highest COVID-19 death toll
The United States crossed the grim milestone of 500,000 deaths from COVID-19 on Monday, a year since announcing its first known death from the virus on February 29, 2020 in the Seattle area.
Why does the world’s leading power have the highest death toll and what lessons are American health specialists learning from the past year?
Here, infectious disease experts Joseph Masci and Michele Halpern provide answers to some of the key questions.
Masci, 70, is one of the leaders of Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, which was at the heart of New York’s epidemic.
Halpern is a specialist at the Montefiore hospital group in New Rochelle, a New York suburb where the epidemic arrived in force in February 2020.
– Why has the United States been hit so hard? –
Prior to this pandemic, the United States observed coronaviruses “from a distance,” explained Masci.
“There was SARS in Canada but very little or none in this country. There was no MERS here at all,” he said.
“There was a lot of preparation made for Ebola coming to the United States, and it never really did.
“Suddenly this (coronavirus) was a problem where the United States was the epicenter.”
Masci said it was difficult to compare the United States with other countries.
“I think smaller countries that had structured health care services had a good chance of bringing things into play quickly.
“In a country like ours, with 50 independent states, and a huge landmass, with largely a private hospital system, it is always going to be difficult to get everybody on board with one particular set of strategies,” he explained.
Masci added that Donald Trump’s administration had a “haphazard approach”, which did not help.
“The fact that hospitals were competing with each other to get personal protective equipment didn’t make sense. They had to centralize all of that very quickly and they didn’t.
“It was a struggle to try to deal with those obstacles that were put up,” he said.
Masci and Halpern rue that mask-wearing was politicized.
“It’s purely a health care issue,” said Masci, adding that it is going to be difficult for the federal government to “reframe” that message.
Halpern insists that people should not see mask-wearing as “infringing” on their freedom.
“There are other things we do routinely that you could say infringe our liberties like wearing a seatbelt or running through a red light,” she said.
According to the Johns Hopkins University tally, another 1,297 virus-related deaths were reported on Monday in the United States.
– What are the main lessons to be learned from the crisis? –
For Masci, the most important lesson was to learn how to reconfigure hospitals to make them able to cope with a sudden influx of patients.
“Now… instead of 12 hot ICU beds, you have to have 150. Where do you get them? Who do you staff on with? So now we’ve learned this lesson.” he said.
Masci said the group of public hospitals of which Elmhurst is a part found strategies to distribute the burden among NYC’s 11 public hospitals by transferring patients very quickly.
“We’ve turned from one hospital with 500 beds, to 11 hospitals with about 5,000 beds. It’s worked very nicely.”
More generally, Halpern says the pandemic has made everyone realize that “hospitals need resources.”
“You have to invest in research, but you also have to invest in hospitals, in nursing homes. They have to have enough staff, they have to have the equipment that they need and the personnel has to be happy,” she added.
The epidemic has also sharply exposed inequalities, not just in health care but also in housing, with Black and Latino communities dying in disproportionately high numbers.
“We have to look at housing, and how it can be better suited to handling future epidemics. There are others coming,” said Masci.
– Will we still be wearing masks in December? –
Vaccines are rolling out but health experts are cautious due to uncertainties surrounding the British and South African variants of the virus.
Masci says that if the variant strains don’t turn into a huge problem and once we’ve reached the point where 70-80 percent of the population is vaccinated then “there’s a good chance” we won’t wear masks anymore.
“(But) suppose these variant strains do take hold, become more of a problem, are vaccine resistant, and we’re all closing schools and putting masks and locking down again in a few months, (then) it’s a lot harder to say by December, ‘We’ll be out of the woods.’”
Halpern says it’s reassuring that the second wave was largely controlled, in New York at least.
“I have hopes that the vaccines will be effective and will tamper future waves. But it’s hard to be sure whether our vaccines will be effective in the longer term, or on new variants. I don’t think anyone knows that.
“So we have to be prepared that we’re in this for a while,” she said.
In the long term, Masci says countries must not “fall into the trap” of forgetting about the pandemic once it has passed.
“It is unnerving to think that this came without warning. It’s caused so much restructuring of everything.
“We have to have a more meticulous global search for new pathogens because we’re living in a time now where there is no, ‘Something is happening in Asia and it’s not going to happen in America.’”
The lawmaker representing Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Aderemi Oseni, has pledged to support the breast cancer awareness programme of the ABC Foundation founded by former Oyo First Lady, Dr. Florence Ajimobi.
Oseni, who is Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA), made the commitment on Thursday in Ibadan at the flag-off of Pink Month 2025, an initiative of the foundation.
Contained in a statement by his media aide, Idowu Ayodele, the lawmaker described the campaign as a “lifesaving mission” given the rising burden of breast cancer in Nigeria, with over 28,000 new cases and thousands of deaths reported annually.
The APC chieftain said the free screening of 1,000 women planned by the foundation was timely, stressing that early detection remained the strongest weapon in the fight against cancer.
Hon. Aderemi Oseni exchanging pleasantries with former Oyo State First Lady, Dr. (Mrs.) Florence Ajimobi, at the event.
“Health is life. Only this June, I moved a motion at the National Assembly which led to the Federal Government subsidising dialysis treatment nationwide. Today, dialysis is either free or heavily discounted in federal health facilities,” Oseni said.
He listed his personal interventions to include funding hospital bills of indigent patients, construction of hospitals in Ido and Ibarapa East, establishment of primary health centres, and organisation of medical outreaches. He also disclosed plans to deploy mobile clinics to rural areas.
Commending Mrs. Ajimobi for sustaining her late husband’s legacy through humanitarian service, Oseni assured of partnership with the foundation, saying women’s wellbeing and empowerment remained central to his vision for Oyo State.
In her remarks, Mrs. Ajimobi said the foundation had offered medical care to over 85,000 patients and conducted more than 100,000 investigations since its inception. She added that the campaign was not just corporate social responsibility but “a moral duty and sacred trust.”
The former first lady, who lost her daughter Abisola to breast cancer earlier this year, said the experience had strengthened her resolve to save other families from such tragedy. She appealed to women to take advantage of the free screening and called on partners and development agencies to support the fight.
Chairman of Fidson Healthcare Plc, Dr. Fidelis Akhagboso Ayebae, and Chief Executive Officer of Hazon Holdings, Dr. Victor ’Gbenga Afolabi, are set to lead discussions at the second edition of the D’Bio Wellness & Selfcare Summit.
The event is scheduled to hold on September 24 and 25 at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) Conference and Exhibition Centre, Alausa, Ikeja.
This year’s summit has the theme: “Self-Care as a Driver of Optimal Health and Wellness.”
Ayebae will serve as chairman of the event, while Afolabi, who is also the co-founder of Wellness HMO, will deliver the keynote address.
Ayebae, founder of Fidson Healthcare, is regarded as one of Nigeria’s leading pharmaceutical entrepreneurs. He is a fellow of the Institute of Directors Nigeria and the Institute of Corporate Affairs Management, and has held significant roles in the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria.
Afolabi has more than 20 years’ experience spanning healthcare, finance, technology and marketing. He is also the founder of the Eko Innovation Centre, a Lagos-based technology hub that supports start-ups and young entrepreneurs.
Convener of the summit, Dr. Monica Hemben Eimunjeze, said the event would focus on practical steps to improve health outcomes through self-care.
She said, “We are excited to welcome Dr. Ayebae and Dr. Afolabi as pivotal figures in our quest to enhance health literacy and empower individuals to prioritise self-care. This summit is not just about discussions; it is about actionable insights that can inspire and transform lives.”
The organisers said the two-day summit is open to the public and will feature panel sessions with health and wellness experts, attracting healthcare professionals, advocates and business leaders.
The Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Moor Plantation, Apata, Ibadan, has joined the campaign to eradicate malaria in Nigeria.
The initiative followed the unveiling of the Geneith Health Competition on the institution’s campus on Tuesday.
The competition, organised by CEOAfrica in partnership with Geneith Pharmaceuticals Limited and powered by Coatal Forte Softgel, targets students of tertiary and secondary schools nationwide to spread knowledge on malaria prevention.
Convener of the project, Mr. Cletus Ilobanafo, said the programme was designed to raise awareness through a structured health contest at the state, regional and national levels.
He said Geneith Pharmaceuticals has committed N1 billion to the project, with N400 million earmarked for scholarships and N600 million for gift items to motivate participants. “By promoting education and prevention strategies, this competition underscores the dedication of all stakeholders in combating malaria and improving public health in Nigeria,” Ilobanafo added.
The Provost of the College, Dr. Chidi Okpeze, praised the organisers for selecting the institution as a launch platform for the campaign. He expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu and Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Idi Mukhtar Maiha, for their commitment to repositioning the livestock sector to boost national growth.
“Our students are ready to key into this initiative. They are articulate, active, and have represented us well in international competitions. We are confident they will excel in this campaign too,” he said.
The Provost urged the students to brace up for the task ahead and uphold the institution’s tradition of excellence.
Some students, who spoke on behalf of their colleagues, pledged to support the anti-malaria campaign by intensifying environmental sanitation on campus. They also commended the organisers and sponsors for giving them the opportunity to contribute to the fight against malaria.
They promised to sustain clean surroundings and spread the message beyond the school to ensure malaria is eradicated from the system.
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