 The mortality gap between the United States and other high-income nations widened significantly over the past two decades, with the U.S. experiencing higher mortality rates compared to its peers. This gap was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused an additional 892,491 deaths in the U.S. in 2021 alone. The U.S. also experienced slower vaccine uptake than many of its European counterparts, resulting in a higher proportion of deaths attributed to COVID-19. As a result, the U.S. had more excess deaths than any other country in 2021, accounting for 25 percent of total global excess deaths. This article was authored by Patrick Huevelein.