COVID-19 variants responsible for nearly half of one million U.S. Deaths

COVID-19 variants were responsible for approximately 460,000 deaths in the U.S. since the start of the pandemic, according to a new preprint study released this week by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health and Public Citizen.

Over 40% of COVID-19 deaths — approximately 430,000 — were caused by three SARS-CoV-2 variants first detected outside of the U.S.: Alpha, detected in the…