Late last month, Gov. Andy Beshear held a memorial for the Kentuckians who died of COVID-19.
“Every flag you see out here today represents a real Kentuckian,” Beshear said. “Every single one. Every loss is heartbreaking.”
But missing were flags for at least 768 more Kentuckians that local health departments had already reported died of COVID-19. By that day, local health departments reported nearly 4,100 Kentuckians had lost their lives to the virus.
A WFPL News analysis of local and regional health department data on COVID deaths found counties reported 23% more deaths than the state had by Jan. 21, a number that was not passed on to the public as coronavirus deaths surged.