False: US has the lowest case fatality rates of any major country in the world.

By: Devika Kandelwal
August 28 2020

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The US case fatality rate at 3.1% is higher than that of Russia, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Norway, and Japan. On the fourth night of the Republican National Convention, Trump falsely claimed that the United States has the lowest case fatality rates in the world. According to John Hopkins, the US has a fatality rate of 3.1%, but that is still higher than Russia's, which is 1.7%; Saudi Arabia's, which is 1.2%; Israel's, which is 0.8%; Norway's, which is 2.5%; Japan's, which is 1.9%. Moreover, the CDC found that many of the deaths have not been reported and found an excess of deaths, which have been attributed to coronavirus. Furthermore, according to Johns Hopkins University, the US has among the highest mortality rates when measured per 100,000 people. The US comes in at 54.93 deaths per 100,000. Only ten countries have higher rates, including Brazil, at 56.17 deaths per 100,000, Sweden at 57.12, and the UK, at 62.49. More than 100 countries have lower death rates than the US. They include Mexico, Panama, France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Norway, Greece, Sudan, and Haiti. The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a lot of potentially dangerous misinformation. For reliable advice on COVID-19 including symptoms, prevention and available treatment, please refer to the World Health Organisation or your national healthcare authority.