Great Lakes Wire

There were less than 10 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Michigan in the week ending July 29, making up less than 0.6% of total deaths by all causes in Michigan, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 29, there were 1,759 deaths in the state. 24.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.8% were from cancer and less than 0.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 8.4% 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	428	24.3
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	401	22.8
Cerebrovascular diseases	81	4.6
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	73	4.2
Alzheimer's disease	68	3.9
Diabetes mellitus	49	2.8
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	36	2
Influenza and pneumonia	18	1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 0.6
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	< 0.6

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	147	8.4