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https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/21/world/coronavirus-missing-deaths.html
At least 36,000 more people have died during the coronavirus pandemic over the last month than the official Covid-19 death counts report, a review of mortality data in 12 countries shows
In the last month, far more people died in these countries than in previous years, The New York Times found. The totals include deaths from Covid-19 as well as those from other causes, likely including people who could not be treated as hospitals became overwhelmed.
| Area | PCT. above normal | Excess deaths | − | Reported Covid-19 deaths | = | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spain Mar. 9 - Apr. 5 |
66% | 19,700 | − | 12,401 | = | 7,300 |
| Ecuador Mar. 1 - Apr. 15 |
82% | 7,600 | − | 503 | = | 7,100 |
| France Mar. 9 - Apr. 5 |
32% | 14,500 | − | 8,059 | = | 6,500 |
| England & Wales Mar. 7 - Apr. 10 |
33% | 16,700 | − | 10,335 | = | 6,300 |
| New York City Mar. 11 - Apr. 22 |
300% | 19,200 | − | 15,411 | = | 3,800 |
| Netherlands Mar. 9 - Apr. 5 |
33% | 4,000 | − | 2,166 | = | 1,900 |
| Jakarta March |
57% | 1,600 | − | 84 | = | 1,500 |
| Istanbul Mar. 9 - Apr. 12 |
29% | 2,100 | − | 1,006 | = | 1,100 |
| Switzerland Mar. 9 - Apr. 5 |
21% | 1,000 | − | 712 | = | 300 |
| Belgium Mar. 9 - Apr. 5 |
25% | 2,300 | − | 2,373 | = | -30 |
| Sweden Mar. 9 - Apr. 12 |
12% | 1,100 | − | 1,160 | = | -50 |
Of course, mortality data in the middle of a pandemic is not perfect. The disparities between the official death counts and the total rise in deaths most likely reflect limited testing for the virus, rather than intentional undercounting. Officially, about 165,000 people have died worldwide of the coronavirus as of Tuesday.
But the total death numbers offer a more complete portrait of the pandemic, experts say, especially because most countries report only those Covid-19 deaths that occur in hospitals.
And the virus could have been circulating in California as early as mid Januari
https://globalnews.ca/news/6856758/coronavirus-california-early-deaths/
Two people with the coronavirus died in California as much as three weeks before the U.S. reported its first death from the disease in late February Dr. Sara Cody, health director in Northern California’s Santa Clara County, said the deaths were missed because of a scarcity of testing and the federal government’s limited guidance on who should be tested. The infections in the two patients were confirmed by way of autopsy tissue samples that were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for analysis.
Officials said the two Santa Clara County patients died at home — a 57-year-old woman on Feb. 6 and a 69-year-old man on Feb. 17 — and that neither had traveled out of the country to a coronavirus outbreak area. Family members identified the woman as Patricia Dowd of San Jose, a manager at a semiconductor company who became sick in late January with flu-like symptoms.
Because it can take one or two weeks between the time people get infected and when they get sick enough to die, the Feb. 6 death suggests the virus was circulating in California in late January, if not earlier. Previously, the first infection reported anywhere in the U.S. was in the Seattle area on Jan. 21.
Caifornia isn't as hard hit as NY though. Is it less contagious on the West Coast, different weather, different strain perhaps? California did put on the brakes a lot sooner I think.
