Great Lakes Wire

There were 128 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Michigan in the week ending Nov. 12, making up 6.1% of total deaths by all causes in Michigan, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Nov. 12, there were 2,084 deaths in the state. 25.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.9% were from cancer and 9.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.5% 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	532	25.5
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	415	19.9
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	128	6.1
Cerebrovascular diseases	110	5.3
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	102	4.9
Alzheimer's disease	80	3.8
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	76	3.6
Diabetes mellitus	55	2.6
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	42	2
Influenza and pneumonia	26	1.2

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	156	7.5