Coronavirus Pandemic Led to Surge in Alzheimer's Deaths

Health officials believe at least 15,000 more Americans have died in recent months from Alzheimer's disease and dementia than otherwise would have because of the coronavirus pandemic, reports the Wall Street Journal . According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the death rates began to climb sharply in mid-March. By mid-April, about 250 additional people with some form of dementia were dying every day. People with advanced Alzheimer's and dementia are often frail, reliant on regular routines and close care from family members and other caregivers, but vulnerable to disruption. The National Center for Health Statistics ranked Alzheimer's sixth among causes of death in 2018, and attributed 266,000 deaths annually to Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. This means that the estimated 15,000 extra Alzheimer's and dementia deaths during the four months early in the pandemic were in addition to 85,400 typical fatalities caused by the neurological disorders. "It's going to take more complete data and some more time to estimate how much of these are missed COVID-19 deaths and how many of these are indirect," said the CDC's Robert Anderson. Worse still, people with Alzheimer's and dementia are among the most exposed to the coronavirus and the most at-risk for its worst effects. National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care Executive Director Lori Smetanka said the pandemic's sudden halt to family visits with residents in care communities has been especially hard for people with dementia, noting that people are "declining and dying literally from loneliness and feelings of abandonment."