The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic five years ago, on March 11, 2020. By then, the disease had already claimed more than 4,000 lives.

Today, WHO attributes more than 7 million deaths across the globe to COVID — though the agency has said the true toll could be higher. Hundreds of millions of others have dealt with ongoing health impacts, like long COVID, a condition in which symptoms continue or emerge a month or more after the initial infection and can linger for months or years. The disease and efforts to curb its spread upended economies and societies around the world, affecting sectors ranging from healthcare and education, to housing, small business and more, with many of the effects still becoming clear and reverberating half a decade later.

FRONTLINE and our partners have been covering the crisis since the beginning — from tracing how China responded in the early stages of the outbreak to examining how the U.S. had one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in the world. Our reporting also offered a wrenching look inside hospital wards as doctors and nurses in Italy risked their lives to care for COVID patients and explored how the pandemic intensified an ongoing humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

Revisit our documentaries below, and explore our full coverage here.

Coronavirus Pandemic (April 2020)

In 2020, the U.S. became one of the countries with the worst-known coronavirus outbreaks in the world. FRONTLINE investigated the American response to COVID-19 — from Washington state to Washington, D.C. — and examined what happens when politics and science collide. (Credits)

Inside Italy’s COVID War (May 2020)

With unprecedented access, FRONTLINE followed Dr. Francesca Mangiatordi, a senior ER doctor at a hospital in northern Italy, her staff and the COVID patients they treated. The resulting documentary offered a profoundly intimate look at the lives of those who were at the front lines of the pandemic. (Credits)

The Virus: What Went Wrong? (June 2020)

Despite repeated warnings of a potent contagion headed to the U.S., why was the country caught so unprepared? In this documentary, FRONTLINE explored who was accountable and why. (Credits)

COVID’s Hidden Toll (July 2020)

Examining how the COVID crisis hit vulnerable immigrants and undocumented workers, this documentary told the first-person stories of crucial farm and meat-packing workers who lacked protections and were getting sick. (Credits)

Love, Life & the Virus (August 2020)

This documentary explored the pandemic’s impact on one immigrant family, following a mother’s fight to survive COVID and be reunited with her newborn baby. (Credits)

America’s Medical Supply Crisis (October 2020)

Why was the U.S. left scrambling for critical medical equipment as the coronavirus swept the country? FRONTLINE, The Associated Press and Global Reporting Centre investigated the fragmented global medical supply chain and its deadly consequences. (Credits)

American Voices: A Nation in Turmoil (November 2020)

This documentary offered a look into the lives of voters in 2020 as they dealt with COVID-19 in the spring, responded to George Floyd’s killing that summer and experienced a polarizing election and its aftermath in the fall of that year. (Credits)

China’s COVID Secrets (February 2021)

In this documentary, Chinese scientists and doctors, international disease experts and health officials revealed missed opportunities to suppress the COVID-19 outbreak and the lessons it held for the world. (Credits)

Yemen’s COVID Cover-up (February 2021)

FRONTLINE investigated how the coronavirus pandemic deepened what has been called the worst humanitarian crisis in the world in Yemen. Years of war had led to widespread starvation among children and forced millions of people from their homes before COVID hit. (Credits)

Death is Our Business (March 2021)

In intimate and moving detail, this documentary examined how Black funeral homes in New Orleans adapted to the devastating impact of COVID-19 in their communities. A co-production with Firelight Media and WORLD Channel, the film revealed the racial disparities of the virus’ toll and shed light on how the coronavirus rocked cherished cultural practices in the city. (Credits)

The Virus That Shook the World (April 2021)

This three-hour documentary, filmed across the globe and drawing on extensive personal video and local footage, showed how people and countries responded to COVID-19 across cultures, races, faiths and privilege — from lockdowns to funerals to protests. (Credits)

The Healthcare Divide (May 2021)

FRONTLINE and NPR investigated the growing inequities in American healthcare exposed by COVID-19. This documentary examined how pressure to increase profits and uneven government support widened the divide between rich and poor hospitals, endangering care for low-income populations. (Credits)

The Power of the Fed (July 2021)

When COVID-19 struck, the U.S. Federal Reserve stepped in to try to avert an economic crisis. As the country’s central bank pumped billions of dollars into the financial system daily, FRONTLINE examined who was benefiting and at what cost. (Credits)

Facing Eviction (July 2022)

Despite a federal ban on evictions, some American families struggled to keep their homes during the COVID pandemic. This documentary made in collaboration with Retro Report offered an intimate look at the affordable housing crisis in the U.S. through the eyes of tenants, landlords, judges and law enforcement. (Credits)

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