‘A terrible tragedy’: US passes 800,000 Covid deaths – highest in the world

Figure deemed doubly heartbreaking amid widespread availability of vaccines, as WHO warns Omicron is spreading at unprecedented rate

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The US death toll from Covid-19 has passed 800,000, a once-unimaginable figure seen as doubly tragic given that more than 200,000 of those lives were lost after vaccines became available last spring.

The figure represents the highest reported toll of any country in the world, and is likely even higher.