COVID-19 has spread so rapidly that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) chief, Dr. Robert Redfield, said, “I actually believe they’re going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation.” He was referring to December, January and February.

The number of coronavirus deaths in America is staggering at 276,576, as the daily increase reached a record of 2,664. A huge number of these fatal cases are concentrated in relatively small areas as measured by square miles. In fact, the top 50 counties, based on deaths per county, have 37% of the national total. America’s has 3,143 counties.

The 50 counties with the most deaths point to the pattern of the spread of the disease. While Los Angeles County leads the list at 7,655 fatal cases, it is the largest county in the country by far, as measured by population, at 10,098,052. But many of the other counties at the top of the list are in New York, Illinois and Michigan, where the disease hit hard and early in the cycle from March through early May.

The second hardest-hit county based on fatal count is Cook County, Illinois, with a total of 6,695. It is home to Chicago. It does have the second largest population in the United States at 5,223,719, but most of the deaths came early.

Wayne County, Michigan, home to Detroit was also savaged by the disease, with 3,237 deaths. With a population of 1,761,382, it is smaller based on that measure than most other counties with the highest death tolls.

New York City has three of the top seven counties based on fatal cases. The city was devastated in the spring. Kings County, which contains the borough of Brooklyn, had 5,205, which puts it third on the list of counties by fatal case count. It is followed by Queens County at 5,182. Bronx county has had 3,436. New York County, home to Manhattan has had 2,148.

The early concentration of the disease in New York was not limited to the city. Nearby Nassau County on Long Island has had 2,260 deaths. Essex County, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York City, has had 2,238. Nearby Bergen County, New Jersey, has had 2,139 fatal cases. Suffolk County, also on Long Island, has had 2,065 deaths.

As the disease moved South, many large counties in the region took the brunt of the pandemic. Maricopa County, Arizona, home to Phoenix, America’s fastest-growing large city, has posted 4,010 fatal cases. Miami-Dade has had 3,839. Harris County, Texas, home to Houston, has had 3,009.

Almost all these counties share one thing in common. Each has one of America’s large cities, with dense populations. That means they will not be spared from America’s rapidly rising death toll in the future.

These are the 50 counties where the most Americans have died from COVID-19.

County	State	Population	Deaths
Los Angeles	California	10,098,052	7,655
Cook	Illinois	5,223,719	6,695
Kings	New York	2,600,747	5,205
Queens	New York	2,298,513	5,182
Maricopa	Arizona	4,253,913	4,010
Miami-Dade	Florida	2,715,516	3,839
Bronx	New York	1,437,872	3,436
Wayne	Michigan	1,761,382	3,237
Harris	Texas	4,602,523	3,009
Middlesex	Massachusetts	1,595,192	2,430
Nassau	New York	1,356,564	2,260
Essex	New Jersey	793,555	2,238
New York	New York	1,632,480	2,148
Bergen	New Jersey	929,999	2,139
Suffolk	New York	1,487,901	2,056
Philadelphia	Pennsylvania	1,575,522	2,042
Hidalgo	Texas	849,389	1,817
Clark	Nevada	2,141,574	1,782
Palm Beach	Florida	1,446,277	1,697
Broward	Florida	1,909,151	1,664
Hartford	Connecticut	894,730	1,609
Hudson	New Jersey	668,631	1,582
Orange	California	3,164,182	1,577
Dallas	Texas	2,586,552	1,539
Westchester	New York	968,815	1,517
Fairfield	Connecticut	944,348	1,516
Bexar	Texas	1,925,865	1,498
Middlesex	New Jersey	826,698	1,496
Essex	Massachusetts	781,024	1,460
Riverside	California	2,383,286	1,442
Union	New Jersey	553,066	1,437
Oakland	Michigan	1,250,843	1,367
Passaic	New Jersey	504,041	1,320
Macomb	Michigan	868,704	1,291
Worcester	Massachusetts	822,280	1,280
New Haven	Connecticut	859,339	1,259
Suffolk	Massachusetts	791,766	1,250
Norfolk	Massachusetts	698,249	1,184
Ocean	New Jersey	591,939	1,130
San Bernardino	California	2,135,413	1,129
Hennepin	Minnesota	1,235,478	1,121
El Paso	Texas	837,654	1,078
Tarrant	Texas	2,019,977	1,026
Cameron	Texas	421,750	1,013
San Diego	California	3,302,833	997
St. Louis	Missouri	998,684	975
Montgomery	Maryland	1,040,133	960
Montgomery	Pennsylvania	821,301	941
Prince George’s	Maryland	906,202	936
Hillsborough	Florida	1,378,883	933

Get Our Free Investment Newsletter

I have read, and agree to the Terms of Use

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.