With thanks to Global Health Now
'150,000+ previously uncounted COVID-19 deaths occurred in 2020 and 2021 in the U.S., likely outside of hospitals, finds a new study published in Science Advances, which drew on data from death certificates and found that the undiagnosed people who died were more likely to be Hispanic people and other people of color, largely in the South and Southwest. U.S. News & World Report' https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aef5697
COMMENT (NPW): Some of us may have assumed that high-income countries such as the United States would be able to measure deaths, at least approximately. But this study suggests otherwise. Furthermore the authos write: 'The communities affected by the undercounting of COVID-19 deaths could be interpreted as a pattern of structural racism, classism, and ableism in the death investigation system that warrants further research and policy attention', although the study 'did not directly examine actors, policies, and structures in death investigation and other health systems that may have contributed to inaccuracies in COVID-19 death reporting'.
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org