The U.S. COVID-19 death toll hit 200,000 Tuesday, a grim measure of the pandemic that has held the country in its grip for half a year and profoundly altered its day-to-day life.

The current coronavirus mortality rate in the United States is nowhere near what it was in April at the pandemic’s peak, when daily deaths would often surpass 2,000. By early July, the death toll had declined to a low of about 400. But as people resumed normal, pre-pandemic activities throughout the summer, new cases and deaths rose, especially in Sun Belt states. By August, about 1,000 people were dying on average each day.