Spanish Flu and Covid 19

Why was the death toll in the Spanish Flu of 1918 so high? Why were the details not shared with the public? Why were Black doctors and nurses so key to the survival rates of Americans not serving in WWI?

Zita Christian interviews retired Connecticut state senator and history professor Mary Ann Handley about the Spanish Flu of 1918. The interview originally aired in May 2018 on episode 123 of Page 1. Find it on  YouTube.com/zitatvnetwork. The interview was to help writers determine character, setting, plot, and conflict from an actual historical event.