Meaning Official tallies of deaths due to COVID-19 underestimate the full increase in deaths associated with the pandemic in many states.
The number of excess all-cause deaths was 28% higher than the official tally of COVID-19–reported deaths during that period.
There was substantial variability between states in the difference between official COVID-19 deaths and the estimated burden of excess deaths.
Questions have been raised about the reported tallies of deaths related to COVID-19 in the United States.
Some officials have raised concerns that deaths not caused by the virus were improperly attributed to COVID-19, inflating the reported tolls.
The excess deaths methodology has been used to quantify official undercounting of deaths for many pathogens, including pandemic influenza viruses and HIV.7-9.
In this study, we estimate the excess deaths due to any cause in each week of the COVID-19 pandemic across the United States. »