Dataset Information

Evidence on COVID-19 Mortality and Disparities Using a Novel Measure, COVID excess mortality percentage: Evidence from Indiana, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

ABSTRACT: COVID-19 mortality rates increase rapidly with age, are higher among men than women, and vary across racial/ethnic groups, but this is also true for other natural causes of death. Prior research on COVID-19 mortality rates and racial/ethnic disparities in those rates has not considered to what extent disparities reflect COVID-19-specific factors, versus preexisting health differences. This study examines both questions. We study the COVID-19-related increase in mortality risk and racial/ethnic disparities in COVID-19 mortality, and how both vary with age, gender, and time period. We use a novel measure validated in prior work, the COVID Excess Mortality Percentage (CEMP), defined as the COVID-19 mortality rate (Covid-MR), divided by the non-COVID natural mortality rate during the same time period (non-Covid NMR), converted to a percentage. The CEMP denominator uses Non-COVID NMR to adjust COVID-19 mortality risk for underlying population health. The CEMP measure generates insights which differ from those using two common measures-the COVID-MR and the all-cause excess mortality rate. By studying both CEMP and COVID-MRMR, we can separate the effects of background health from Covid-specific factors affecting COVID-19 mortality. We study how CEMP and COVID-MR vary by age, gender, race/ethnicity, and time period, using data on all adult decedents from natural causes in Indiana and Wisconsin over April 2020-June 2022 and Illinois over April 2020-December 2021. CEMP levels for racial and ethnic minority groups can be very high relative to White levels, especially for Hispanics in 2020 and the first-half of 2021. For example, during 2020, CEMP for Hispanics aged 18-59 was 68.9% versus 7.2% for non-Hispanic Whites; a ratio of 9.57:1. CEMP disparities are substantial but less extreme for other demographic groups. Disparities were generally lower after age 60 and declined over our sample period. Differences in socio-economic status and education explain only a small part of these disparities.

SUBMITTER: Atanasov V

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10829977 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Evidence on COVID-19 Mortality and Disparities Using a Novel Measure, COVID excess mortality percentage: Evidence from Indiana, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

Atanasov Vladimir V Barreto Natalia N Franchi Lorenzo L Whittle Jeff J Meurer John J Weston Benjamin W BW Luo Qian Eric QE Yuan Andy Ye AY Zhang Ruohao R Black Bernard B

PloS one 20240131 1

COVID-19 mortality rates increase rapidly with age, are higher among men than women, and vary across racial/ethnic groups, but this is also true for other natural causes of death. Prior research on COVID-19 mortality rates and racial/ethnic disparities in those rates has not considered to what extent disparities reflect COVID-19-specific factors, versus preexisting health differences. This study examines both questions. We study the COVID-19-related increase in mortality risk and racial/ethnic d ...[more]

PMID: 38295114

Similar Datasets

Project description:IntroductionData on the increase in mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic based on individuals' socioeconomic positions are limited. This study examines this increase in mortality in Spain during the epidemic waves of 2020 and 2021.MethodsWe calculated the overall and cause-specific mortality rates during the 2017-2019 pre-pandemic period and four epidemic periods in 2020 and 2021 (first, second, third-fourth, and fifth-sixth waves). Mortality rates were analyzed based on educational levels (low, medium, and high) and across various age groups (25-64, 65-74, and 75+). The increase in mortality during each epidemic period compared to the pre-pandemic period was estimated using mortality rate ratios (MRR) derived from Poisson regression models.ResultsAn inverse educational gradient in overall mortality was observed across all periods; however, this pattern was not consistent for COVID-19 mortality in some age groups. Among those aged 75 years and older, highly educated individuals showed higher COVID-19 mortality during the first wave. In the 25-64 age group, individuals with low education experienced the highest overall mortality increase, while those with high education had the lowest increase. The MRRs were 1.21 and 1.06 during the first wave and 1.12 and 0.97 during the last epidemic period. In the 65-74 age group, highly educated individuals showed the highest overall mortality increase during the first wave, whereas medium-educated individuals had the highest increase during the subsequent epidemic periods. Among those aged 75 and older, highly educated individuals exhibited the highest overall mortality increase while the individuals with low education showed the lowest overall mortality increment, except during the last epidemic period.ConclusionThe varying educational patterns of COVID-19 mortality across different age groups contributed to the disparities of findings in increased overall mortality by education levels during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dataset Information

Evidence on COVID-19 Mortality and Disparities Using a Novel Measure, COVID excess mortality percentage: Evidence from Indiana, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

Publications

Evidence on COVID-19 Mortality and Disparities Using a Novel Measure, COVID excess mortality percentage: Evidence from Indiana, Wisconsin, and Illinois.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets