Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness
April 5, 2021
Excess Deaths From COVID-19 and Other Causes in the US, March 1, 2020, to January 2, 2021
Category: Article Summary
Topic: Public Health Policy and Practice
Keywords (Tags): mortality
- The US experienced 22.9% more deaths than expected (522,368 excess deaths) between March 1, 2020 and January 2, 2021. The rate of excess deaths was higher among non-Hispanic Black (208.4 deaths per 100 000) than non-Hispanic white or Hispanic populations (157.0 and 139.8 deaths per 100 000, respectively); these groups accounted for 16.9%, 61.1%, and 16.7% of excess deaths, respectively. Deaths rates from causes other than COVID-19, including heart disease and Alzheimer disease, increased during COVID-19 surges in the US. The 10 states with the highest per capita rate of excess deaths were Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Arizona, Alabama, Louisiana, South Dakota, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Ohio.
Woolf et al. (Apr 2, 2021). Excess Deaths From COVID-19 and Other Causes in the US, March 1, 2020, to January 2, 2021. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2021.5199