Disparities in Excess, All-Cause Mortality among Black, Hispanic, and White Veterans at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT: From 2019 to 2020, all-cause mortality in the U.S. increased, with most of the rise attributed to COVID-19. No studies have examined the racial disparities in all-cause mortality among U.S. veterans receiving medical care (VA users) at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) during the pandemic. In the present paper, we conduct a longitudinal study examining the differences in mortality among White, Black, and Hispanic veterans, aged 45 years and older, during the first, full year of the pandemic (March 2020-February 2021). We calculated the Standardized Mortality Rates (SMRs) per 100,000 VA users for each racial and ethnic group by age and gender. The highest percentage increase between the number of deaths occurred between pre- and post-pandemic years (March 2020-February 2021 vs. M

SUBMITTER: Lukowsky LR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8874890 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature