In fact, the most deaths to have resulted from a flu season in the U.S. over the past decade is estimated to be roughly 61,000 in 2017-2018, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than 200,000 Americans have died from Covid since the virus emerged early this year.

And while flu strains change from year to year, varying in severity, most people have some underlying immunity based on prior exposure. But the coronavirus was only identified late last year.

Trump himself appeared to tell The Washington Post’s Bob Woodward in a February interview that the coronavirus was five times more lethal than the flu, saying that Covid-19 is “deadly stuff” and “more deadly than … even your strenuous flus.”

Public health experts have warned that that the fall and winter months could significantly strain the nation’s health care system as it grapples with both a