Great Lakes Wire

There were 11 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Michigan in the week ending June 17, making up 0.6% of total deaths by all causes in Michigan, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 17, there were 1,882 deaths in the state. 26.2% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.6% were from cancer and 0.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.6% 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	494	26.2
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	406	21.6
Cerebrovascular diseases	97	5.2
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	94	5
Alzheimer's disease	67	3.6
Diabetes mellitus	57	3
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	34	1.8
Influenza and pneumonia	23	1.2
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	11	0.6
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 0.5

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	143	7.6