Health

BigmanPigman

(52,259 posts) Tue Sep 20, 2022, 05:28 PM Sep 2022

Covid: a leading cause of death in the U.S. indefinitely, whether or not the pandemic is 'over'

Covid will be a leading cause of death in the U.S. indefinitely, whether or not the pandemic is 'over'
Disease experts predict that Covid will remain among the top 10 causes of death in the U.S. for the foreseeable future.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/covid-will-leading-cause-death-indefinitely-us-rcna48374

"It’s likely, when we think of the causes of death in our society, that Covid’s on the list probably forever,” said Dr. Bob Wachter, the chair of the University of California, San Francisco’s department of medicine."

"Whether we call it a pandemic or not, it’s still an important threat to people," he added.

"Covid was the third-leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, after heart disease and cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The same was true last year, provisional CDC data shows. Since April, Covid deaths have stayed relatively flat, at a weekly average of around 300 to 500 per day. If the trend continues, the U.S. could expect 113,000 to 188,000 deaths a year from Covid, putting it on par with Alzheimer’s, chronic lower respiratory diseases and stroke."

"As we’ve figured out how we’re going to live with this disease in perpetuity, it makes sense to contextualize it as another illness that Americans have to face," said Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and professor at George Washington University."

"Experts said Covid is likely to remain among the U.S.'s 10 leading causes of death for the foreseeable future, regardless of new vaccines, boosters or treatments that might become available."