Buckeye Reporter

There were 16 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Ohio in the week ending July 1, making up 0.7% of total deaths by all causes in Ohio, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 1, there were 2,266 deaths in the state. 22% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.9% were from cancer and 1.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.6% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Heart disease	499	22
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	473	20.9
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	133	5.9
Cerebrovascular diseases	117	5.2
Alzheimer's disease	86	3.8
Diabetes mellitus	63	2.8
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	38	1.7
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	22	1
Influenza and pneumonia	19	0.8
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	16	0.7

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	196	8.6