COVID and overdoses made 2021 the deadliest year for the US, why inflation is so high, and more virus news
Here’s what’s going on in the world of COVID-19 today, April 12.
COVID-19, overdoses pushed US to highest death total ever
2021 was the deadliest year in U.S. history, and new data and research are offering more insights into how it got that bad.
The main reason for the increase in deaths? COVID-19, said Robert Anderson, who oversees the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s work on death statistics.
The agency this month quietly updated its provisional death tally. It showed there were 3.465 million deaths last year, or about 80,000 more than 2020’s record-setting total. Get more info here:
Is COVID “superspreading”?
A recent outbreak of Covid-19 cases among officials in Washington, with dozens testing positive after attending the Gridiron Club Dinner, has put the concept of Covid-19 superspreading back in the spotlight.
Covid-19 superspreading, which involves the virus spreading at a single event on a larger scale than what is typically expected, is still possible and poses a risk. But in this stage of the pandemic, a large event may not necessarily be an invitation to widespread, unchecked illness — if people use tools now available to limit risk, according to public health experts. Find out more here:
Boris Johnson under fire over lockdown-breaking parties
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his finance minister Rishi Sunak were fined by police over lockdown-breaking parties held on UK government premises, a Downing Street spokesperson told CNN on Tuesday.
London’s Metropolitan Police said earlier Tuesday they had issued more than 50 fines as part of their “Operation Hillman” investigation into gatherings held on government premises in Downing Street and Whitehall while the rest of the country was living under strict pandemic restrictions. Revelations of the parties sparked national outrage. Get the details here:
Why is inflation still so high?
For the 12 months that ended in March, consumer prices rocketed 8.5%. That was the fastest year-over-year jump since 1981, far surpassing February’s mark of 7.9%, itself a 40-year high.
Even if you toss out food and energy prices — which are notoriously volatile and have driven much of the price spike — so-called core inflation jumped 6.5% in the past 12 months. That was also the sharpest such jump in four decades. So what’s the cause?:
***
More of today’s COVID-19 stories here:
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
NEW YORK CITY: The exodus from the biggest U.S. metropolitan areas was led by New York, which lost almost 328,000 residents. The decline was driven by people leaving for elsewhere in the U.S., even though the metro area gained new residents from abroad and births outpaced deaths. Its population dipped to 19.7 million residents.
AP file
NEW YORK CITY: The exodus from the biggest U.S. metropolitan areas was led by New York, which lost almost 328,000 residents. The decline was driven by people leaving for elsewhere in the U.S., even though the metro area gained new residents from abroad and births outpaced deaths. Its population dipped to 19.7 million residents.
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles lost almost 176,000 residents, the second biggest drop among U.S. metro areas. Like New York, births outnumbered deaths, and there was an increase in international residents. But it wasn't even close enough to overcome the loss of tens of thousands of residents who moved away. Its population dropped to 12.9 million residents.
AP file
LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles lost almost 176,000 residents, the second biggest drop among U.S. metro areas. Like New York, births outnumbered deaths, and there was an increase in international residents. But it wasn't even close enough to overcome the loss of tens of thousands of residents who moved away. Its population dropped to 12.9 million residents.
-
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
CHICAGO: The loss of more than 91,000 residents in greater Chicago was driven by people moving away. As in New York and Los Angeles, births outpaced deaths in Chicago, but the increase was much smaller than the other two metro areas. Its population stood at 9.5 million residents.
AP file
CHICAGO: The loss of more than 91,000 residents in greater Chicago was driven by people moving away. As in New York and Los Angeles, births outpaced deaths in Chicago, but the increase was much smaller than the other two metro areas. Its population stood at 9.5 million residents.
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
DALLAS: The Dallas area grew by more than 97,000 residents, the most of any U.S. metro area in 2021. Close to two-thirds of the growth came from people moving from elsewhere, and the rest came from births. Its population jumped to 7.7 million residents.
AP file
DALLAS: The Dallas area grew by more than 97,000 residents, the most of any U.S. metro area in 2021. Close to two-thirds of the growth came from people moving from elsewhere, and the rest came from births. Its population jumped to 7.7 million residents.
-
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
HOUSTON: The 69,000 residents that Houston gained was the third-highest of any U.S. metro area. Births accounted for more than half of the growth, though the migration of new residents wasn't far behind. More than a third of the migration to the Houston area came from outside the U.S. Houston's population stood at 7.2 million.
AP file
HOUSTON: The 69,000 residents that Houston gained was the third-highest of any U.S. metro area. Births accounted for more than half of the growth, though the migration of new residents wasn't far behind. More than a third of the migration to the Houston area came from outside the U.S. Houston's population stood at 7.2 million.
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
WASHINGTON: The nation's capital lost almost 29,000 residents in its metro area. A net gain of 25,000 births over deaths wasn't enough to overcome the tens of thousands of residents who left the region. Its population was 6.3 million residents.
AP file
WASHINGTON: The nation's capital lost almost 29,000 residents in its metro area. A net gain of 25,000 births over deaths wasn't enough to overcome the tens of thousands of residents who left the region. Its population was 6.3 million residents.
-
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
PHILADELPHIA: Greater Philadelphia lost more than 13,000 residents. Around three-quarters of the loss came from people leaving, and the rest was caused by deaths outnumbering births. The metro area had 6.2 million residents.
AP file
PHILADELPHIA: Greater Philadelphia lost more than 13,000 residents. Around three-quarters of the loss came from people leaving, and the rest was caused by deaths outnumbering births. The metro area had 6.2 million residents.
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
ATLANTA: The Atlanta area grew by almost 43,000 residents. Almost 60% of the new residents were people who had moved from elsewhere, while the rest came from births. It had 6.1 million residents.
AP file
ATLANTA: The Atlanta area grew by almost 43,000 residents. Almost 60% of the new residents were people who had moved from elsewhere, while the rest came from births. It had 6.1 million residents.
-
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
MIAMI: Greater Miami declined by more than 34,000 residents. Residents moving away from the metro area were more than double the substantial growth in new residents arriving from abroad. Deaths accounted for about 5% of the population loss. The metro had 6 million residents.
AP file
MIAMI: Greater Miami declined by more than 34,000 residents. Residents moving away from the metro area were more than double the substantial growth in new residents arriving from abroad. Deaths accounted for about 5% of the population loss. The metro had 6 million residents.
-
America’s biggest metros lost residents in 1st full year of pandemic
AP file
PHOENIX: Greater Phoenix had the second-largest population gain among U.S. metros, jumping by more than 78,000 residents. Almost all of the growth was driven by residents from other places moving to the Valley of the Sun. More so than Dallas or Houston, the natural increase from births accounted for a very small share of the growth — around 10%. Its population grew to 4.9 million residents.
AP file
PHOENIX: Greater Phoenix had the second-largest population gain among U.S. metros, jumping by more than 78,000 residents. Almost all of the growth was driven by residents from other places moving to the Valley of the Sun. More so than Dallas or Houston, the natural increase from births accounted for a very small share of the growth — around 10%. Its population grew to 4.9 million residents.
