Provisional Mortality Data - United States, 2020.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional national vital statistics registry analysis
PubMed 33830988 · doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7014e1
What was done
Analysis of provisional 2020 U.S. mortality data collected by the CDC National Vital Statistics System from death certificates to estimate total deaths, age-adjusted death rates, demographic distributions, and leading causes of death.
What was found
Approximately 3,358,814 deaths occurred in the United States in 2020. The estimated age-adjusted death rate increased by 15.9% from 2019 to 2020, rising from 715.2 to 828.7 deaths per 100,000 population. COVID-19 was listed as an underlying or contributing cause of death for 377,883 deaths (11.3% of total deaths; 91.5 deaths per 100,000), making it the third leading cause of death behind heart disease and cancer. Overall age-adjusted mortality was highest among adults aged ≥85 years, non-Hispanic Black persons, non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native (AI/AN) persons, and males. COVID-19-specific death rates were highest among adults aged ≥85 years, AI/AN and Hispanic persons, and males.
Why it matters
This report provided early nationwide quantification of the 2020 mortality increase in the United States, confirming COVID-19 as the third leading cause of death and highlighting racial and ethnic disparities.
Limits
Data are provisional and subject to reporting delays, incomplete death certificate submissions, and potential misclassification of causes of death.
Cited by
- supports Over 584,000 individuals aged 50 and older died from COVID-19 in the United States as of mid-2021.