How the United States reached 1 million COVID deaths: What the data shows

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Most of those deaths — more than 80 percent from April to December 2021, for instance — were unvaccinated Americans, according to the CDC. As of February, the risk of death from Covid was 20 times higher for unvaccinated people than for those who were vaccinated and boosted, the CDC data showed.

"We know vaccines work. We know masks work. We know social distancing works, and we know crowd control, limiting crowded spaces, works. This is like a no-brainer, but we cannot seem to do it," Murphy said.

Edwards, 62, was an intensive care unit nurse for three decades who treated her patients as if they were family, her daughter said.

"I still talk to people that were working with her. I always find myself saying, 'Please be careful. I'm thinking about you,'" Gamble, of Greenville, South Carolina, said. "Two years later and they're still in the fight — I know that cannot be easy."

Nine months after Edwards died, she was recognized with a lifetime achievement award in nursing. Gamble said it was bittersweet to accept the award on her mother's behalf.

"It solidified her work that she's done," Gamble said.

The family created a scholarship in the hopes of bringing more nurses like Edwards into the field. Gamble said she imagines that if Edwards were still alive today, she would likely be telling everyone to take care of themselves.

"She would probably be saying, 'Not only does your health affect you, but it affects other people, so do what you can do to keep yourself healthy,'" she said.

Gamble is certain her mom would have another reminder, too: "Don't take for granted life and the days you are still here on Earth.""