40% Rise Nationwide in Excess Deaths Among 18- to 49-Year-Olds, CDC Data Show
Death certificate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show excess deaths increased by more than 40% among Americans 18 to 49 years old during a 12-month period ending in October of 2021, and that COVID caused only about 42% of those deaths.
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Death certificate data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show excess deaths increased by more than 40% among Americans 18 to 49 years old during a 12-month period ending in October of 2021, and that COVID caused only about 42% of those deaths.
Excess deaths are defined as the difference between the observed number of deaths during a specific time frame and the expected number of deaths during that same period.
State-level data for the same 12-month period also show increases. For example, in Nevada, excess deaths were as high as 65%, with COVID accounting for only 36%.
The District of Columbia saw an even greater increase than Nevada — 72% — with COVID not being a factor in any of the deaths.
Increases in excess deaths were most noticeable in the Midwest and western and southern states, while states seeing the lowest increases were primarily from the Northeast.
On the low side, New Hampshire was the only state to see no increase in excess deaths for the 18 to 49 age group, nor did it record any COVID deaths among that group.
Other states on the high end include:
- Texas: 61% rise, 58% COVID-attributed
- Arizona: 57%, 37%
- Tennessee: 57%, 33%
- California: 55%, 42%
- New Mexico: 52%, 33%
- Florida: 51%, 48%
- Louisiana: 51%, 32%
States reporting a lower number of excess deaths were:
- Delaware: 10% rise, 0% COVID-attributed
- Massachusetts: 13%, 24%
- Maryland: 16%, 42%
- Connecticut: 17%, 23%
- Hawaii: 17%, 45%
- New Jersey: 17%, 58%
According to The Epoch Times, which investigated and reported on the CDC data:
“CDC data on the exact causes of those excess deaths aren’t yet available for 2021, aside from those involving COVID, pneumonia and influenza. There were close to 6,000 excess pneumonia deaths that didn’t involve COVID-19 in the 18-49 age group in the 12 months ending October 2021.
“Influenza was only involved in 50 deaths in this age group, down from 550 in the same period pre-pandemic. The flu death count didn’t exclude those that also involved COVID or pneumonia, the CDC noted.”
The CDC data also show an increase of 27% in excess deaths in the 50 to 84 age group and 12% for those 85 and older.
This data are in line with insurance data from Indiana, revealed last month by Scott Davison, CEO of Indianapolis-based insurance company OneAmerica.
During an online news conference, Davison said there was a 40% rise in the death rate among working-age people 18 to 64 years old in Indiana. He also said COVID was not the leading cause of those deaths.
Davison said he saw the rise in death rates starting in the third quarter of last year, continuing into the fourth quarter. He said it was “the highest … we have seen in the history of this business,” and he added that a “one-in-200-year catastrophe would be a 10% increase over pre-pandemic” excess deaths in that age group.
Some states investigating, while federal health officials remain silent
When The Epoch Times followed up on its initial investigation several states confirmed the data and said they are investigating.
Chris Van Deusen, head of media relations for the Texas Department of State Health Services, emailed The Epoch Times that his department was “looking at the data” and will “get back with you.”
Jeremy Redfern, Florida Department of Health spokesman, responded: “I am looking into it to see if there is some sort of correlation/causation.”
A Nevada official told The Epoch Times the data were submitted “for review.”
An Arizona official responded but would not comment because data were “not yet finalized,” and a DC official said they did not have proper experts to analyze the data.
The Epoch Times sought comment from the federal government, but as of its Jan. 18 reporting, no response has been provided. The newspaper reported:
“The Epoch Times repeatedly inquired with both the White House and the CDC about any steps they’re taking to examine the issue. They have yet to respond.”
What’s behind the rise in excess deaths?
Reports on excess deaths have spawned several theories about what’s driving the increase.
The Epoch Times suggested drug overdoses are at least partly to blame for the increases. Beyond the death certificate data, the newspaper reviewed the CDC’s overdose estimates which showed that during the 12-month period ending in June of 2021, overdose deaths rose from about 72,000 to more than 101,000.
Another theory is that COVID vaccines played a role in the increase, which has support from people on both sides of the vaccine debate.
Indiana’s Davison suggested the unvaccinated were partly to blame, saying the insurance industry was “starting to target and to add premium loads onto employers that are based in counties that have a low vaccination rate.”
Davison acknowledged, however, that the rise in excess deaths in the third and fourth quarters of last year followed well after Indiana’s mass vaccination program began.
According to WFYI, an NPR affiliate in Indianapolis, Davison also said:
“The challenge we have is that 84% of our people are vaccinated, and we have heard loud and clear from our vaccinated employees that they want no part of working in an open office environment with unvaccinated associates. And some of them made it very, very clear that if we try to comingle them with unvaccinated people, they’ll consider the workplace is unsafe.”
Steve Kirsch, executive director of the Vaccine Safety Research Foundation, disagreed, writing:
“So, the insurance companies had a wrong assumption and are blaming the wrong party perhaps because they didn’t have the data to see what was really behind the issue or they didn’t want to challenge the narrative and get in trouble. It could be a combination of the two reasons.”
Dr. Robert Malone argued the vaccine should be considered as the potential cause, adding:
“If this holds true, then the genetic vaccines so aggressively promoted have failed, and the clear federal campaign to prevent early treatment with lifesaving drugs has contributed to a massive, avoidable loss of life.”
