UK no longer in group of 20 worst-hit countries for Covid-19 death rate
The UK has fallen off the list of the 20 countires worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, as measured by excess deaths.
Since the pandemic took hold in March 2020, the UK has recorded 121,000 more deaths in its population than would normally occur in a year. That’s a rate of 183 excess deaths per 100,000.
Peru tops the list of countries with the highest rates of excess deaths due to Covid-19, with 412 per 100,000 according to data analysis from The Economist.
It’s followed by Bulgaria (338), Mexico (321), Russia (313) and Lithuania (301).
South Africa is 11th (237) and the initial European epicentre for Covid-19 Italy is 20th in the ranking, with 197 excess deaths per 100,000 residents.
The UK is now ranked 21st-worst-hit nation, while the US is ranked 23rd qith 182 excess deaths per 100,000 people.
However the UK remains high in the rankings of overall deaths from Covid-19 as well as fatalities per population size.
The largest spikes in deaths were between March and May last year and between the lead-up to Christmas and January 2021.
Since the combination of a successful Covid-19 vaccine rollout and a third national lockdown the tally of daily deaths has dropped from a peak of nearly 2,000 to as low as single figures.
This week deaths globally from the Covid-19 pandemic topped 3m.