Thread by @BBCWorld

Comparing coronavirus deaths between countries can be tricky

The US has the highest number of recorded Covid-19 deaths in total (over 40,000) but it’s important to compare deaths by population size

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The population of the US is 330 million

The combined population of the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain is 320 million

The total number of confirmed coronavirus deaths in those countries is more than twice that of the US, over 85,000

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But these numbers don’t tell the whole story

The daily death tolls include different statistics — France includes deaths in care homes, but England only includes hospital deaths

There is no international standard on measuring coronavirus deaths

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Can we trust the data coming from countries with tightly controlled political systems?

China, where the virus broke out, has an extraordinarily low death-per-million figure

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There are also other reasons why death rates in countries vary so much

Population density, average age and the healthcare systems in place all play a role in how countries deal with coronavirus

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In the UK, most of the people being tested for coronavirus are in hospital

But in Germany and South Korea widespread testing showed a lot about how the virus was spreading

Both countries have had much fewer deaths than the worst affected countries

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Why is this important?

Understanding the death rates in different countries can help experts to see which interventions are working and saving lives

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