1 - Something to think about. The way we calculate the death rate of the Coronavirus is deaths/confirmed cases. The way we count the death rate from influenza (regular annual flu) is deaths/estimated cases.
2- So far, in the 2019/20 Flu season, the CDC says the US has done 1,073,976 tests for influenza and found 222,552 positive. Deaths due to the flu are estimated at 22,000 to 55,000. If we take the low-end of 22,000 and divide that by confirmed cases, it’s a 9.9% death rate.
3 - But, that’s not the way we report it. The CDC uses estimated cases of 36 million to 51 million and gets a death rate in the tenths of a percent for the annual flu.
4 - The point is, we are using very uncertain data to calculate death rates from COVID-19. There are certainly many cases that haven’t been reported. In other words, if we used the same method of reporting the death rate for the regular Flu, the world would panic every year.
