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New CDC Data Shows 94 Percent of COVID-19 Death Cases Had Underlying Poor Health Conditions

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The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Sept. 2 weekly update on COVID-19 mortality in the U.S., which is published by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), reported 170,566 deaths “involving COVID-19” that occurred between Feb. 1, 2020 and Aug. 29, 2020.1 During the same time period there were 1,841,678 deaths from all causes. About 94 percent of the death cases confirmed to be COVID-19-related involved other coinciding infections or underlying poor health conditions, including influenza, pneumonia, hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease.

Child Deaths from COVID-19 Rare

Of the deaths involving COVID-19, 79 percent were over age 65 and 31 percent were over age 85. Children under age 14 accounted for 0.00035 percent of deaths.

Fifty four percent of all deaths involving COVID-19 were male. Provisional death reports for COVID-19 peaked on Mar. 18, 2020, which also coincides with the peak for deaths from all causes in the United States.2 Hispanic and non-Hispanic black residents experienced disproportionate deaths involving COVID-19.3

Most COVID-19 Deaths in Nursing Hospitals, Inpatient Facilities

Almost 65 percent of deaths involving COVID-19 occurred in a nursing home or other inpatient healthcare facility, whereas 29 percent of all-cause deaths during the same period occurred in an inpatient setting. Roughly 21 percent of COVID-19 deaths occurred in nursing homes, while approximately 18 percent of all-cause deaths occurred in nursing homes.

Home is the most common location (33.6 percent) for people who die of all causes in the U.S.4

94 Percent of COVID-19 Death Cases Had Other Underlying Health Problems

For six percent of the coronavirus-associated deaths, COVID-19 was the only cause mentioned. For COVID-19-related death cases in persons who had other infections or conditions in addition to COVID-19, on average, there were 2.6 additional conditions or causes per COVID-related death. The most common respiratory conditions included influenza, pneumonia, respiratory failure, and adult respiratory distress syndrome.

Comorbid circulatory diseases included hypertension, cardiac arrest, ischemic heart disease, heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmia. Approximately 16 percent of the death certificates listed diabetes, and 11 percent stated that vascular and unspecified dementia contributed or was the cause of death. Three percent had intentional or unintentional injury, poisoning or other type of adverse event listed.5

Reports of COVID-19 Deaths Based on Provisional Data

The NCHS uses incoming data from death certificates to produce provisional COVID-19 death counts.6 These include deaths occurring within the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

When COVID-19 is reported as a cause of death—or when it is listed as a “probable” or “presumed” cause—the death is coded using a new ICD-10 code, and this code can include cases with or without laboratory confirmation.

Provisional death counts may not match counts from other sources, such as media reports or numbers from county health departments. Counts by NCHS often track 1–2 weeks behind other data, and may be delayed for the following reasons:

  • Death certificates take time to be completed. There are many steps to filling out and submitting a death certificate. Waiting for test results can create additional delays.
  • States report at different rates. Currently, 63 percent of all U.S. deaths are reported within 10 days of the date of death, but there is significant variation between states.
  • It takes extra time to code COVID-19 deaths. While 80 percent of deaths are electronically processed and coded by NCHS within minutes, most deaths from COVID-19 must be coded by a person, which takes an average of seven days.
  • Other reporting systems use different definitions or methods for counting deaths.

Provisional counts are not final and are subject to change. Counts from previous weeks are continually revised as more records are received and processed. Counts do not include all deaths that occurred during a given time period, especially for more recent periods.

However, NCHS estimates how complete their numbers are by looking at the average number of deaths reported in previous years. Death counts should not be compared across states since some states report deaths on a daily basis, while other states report deaths weekly or monthly. State vital record reporting may also be affected or delayed by COVID-19 related response activities.

CDC Guidelines for Certifying Coronavirus Deaths

Death certificates contain two parts. Part I is for reporting the sequence of conditions that led directly to death. The immediate cause of death, which is the disease or condition that directly preceded death and is not necessarily the underlying cause of death (UCOD), are reported first and the conditions that led to the immediate cause of death should be reported in a logical sequence in terms of time and etiology below it. The UCOD, which is “the disease or injury which initiated the train of morbid events leading directly to death or… the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury,” should be reported on the lowest line used in Part I.7

Other significant conditions that contributed to the death, but are not a part of the sequence in Part I, should be reported in Part II. Not all conditions present at the time of death have to be reported—only those conditions that actually contributed to death.8

In cases where a definite diagnosis of COVID-19 cannot be made, but it is suspected or likely (e.g., the circumstances are compelling within a reasonable degree of certainty), CDC reporting guidelines state:

It is acceptable to report COVID-19 on a death certificate as “probable” or “presumed.” In these instances, certifiers should use their best clinical judgement in determining if a COVID–19 infection was likely. However, please note that testing for COVID-19 should be conducted whenever possible.9

Jeff Lancashire, acting associate director for communications at the NCHS, said that, while 94 percent of death certificates that mention COVID-19 also listed other conditions, the underlying cause of death was COVID-19 in almost all of them. “ The underlying cause of death is the condition that began the chain of events that ultimately led to the person’s death,” he said. “In 92 percent of all deaths that mention COVID-19, COVID-19 is listed as the underlying cause of death.”10

Are CDC guidelines used to “pad” COVID-19 numbers?

Scott Jensen, MD, a family physician and Minnesota state senator, has publicly challenged the CDC’s guidelines for permitting presumed or probable cases of COVID to be listed on death certificates, saying they are “ridiculous” and could be misleading the public. Dr. Jensen states that the CDC’s death certificate manual tells physicians to focus on “precision and specificity,” but the coronavirus death certification guidance runs completely counter to that axiom.11

Dr. Jensen also reacted to Dr. Anthony Fauci’s response to a question about the potential for the number of coronavirus deaths being “padded,” in which the NIAID director described the prevalence of “conspiracy theories” during “challenging” times in public health. Dr. Jensen said:

I would remind him that anytime health care intersects with dollars it gets awkward. Right now Medicare has determined that if you have a COVID-19 admission to the hospital you’ll get paid $13,000. If that COVID-19 patient goes on a ventilator, you get $39,000; three times as much. Nobody can tell me, after 35 years in the world of medicine, that sometimes those kinds of things [don’t have] impact on what we do.

Most Americans Live with Chronic Disease

That so many COVID-19 deaths are associated with chronic disease highlights the risk factor inherent in underlying poor health conditions. The CDC reports that six in ten Americans lives with a chronic disease, and four in ten have two or more. These chronic diseases—heart, lung and kidney disease, cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease—are the leading cause of death and disability, and are the leading drivers in the nation’s $3.5 trillion in annual health care costs,12 as well as raise the risk of severe illness from the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection.13

Obesity is one of the most common underlying conditions increasing one’s risk for severe illness and about 40 percent of U.S. adults are obese.  The more underlying medical conditions people have, the higher their risk.14


References:

1 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Weekly Updates by Select Demographic and Geographic Characteristics. Sept 2, 2020
2 Ibid.
3 CDC. Health Disparities: Race and Hispanic Origin. Sept 2, 2020.
4 See Footnote 1.
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.
7 CDC. Guidelines for Certifying Deaths Due to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) National Vital Statistics Service April 2020.
8 Ibid.
9 Ibid.
10 Funke D Fact check: Did the CDC ‘quietly’ adjust US coronavirus death tally? MSN Sept. 2, 2020.
11 Creitz C Minnesota doctor blasts “ridiculous” CDC coronavirus death count guidelines Fox News Apr. 9, 2020.
12 CDC. Chronic Diseases in America. Oct. 23, 2019.
13 CDC. CDC updates, expands list of people at risk of severe COVID-19 illness. June 25, 2020.
14 Ibid.

12 Responses

  1. “Three percent had intentional or unintentional injury, poisoning or other type of adverse event listed.5” but the world wants us to hunker down, remain isolated, disconnected from supports in our lives & generally go headlong into depressive states that lead some people into “intentional”… “injury, poisoning or other type of adverse event.” God help us because only He can.

  2. Ridiculous hoax!! It really is a hoax! The virus is real but everything beyond that is a hoax! The numbers are all falsified to keep people in fear so that when the vaccination comes out Bill and Melinda can get even richer! Who needs the money from microsoft..they will make that ten fold once the vaccination comes out! It’s comical to me that people don’t see what obvious hear! Also we are strengthening germs with all the hand sanitizers being used. We are building super germs while antibiotics are becoming less effective and no new ones being developed fast enough..it’s gunna be a shit show!

  3. This article is very valuable but uses the approach that if you lay out the data the reader will draw the correct conclusions. If the reader is a doctor or researcher that might be truth. But this and other of your articles leave too much space between the data and the meaning of the data. I find that my friends lose interest fast and don’t get the point which makes sharing these articles not worthwhile. Please assume a lower cognitive level when 60% of adults suffer from chronic illnesses that means close to that number have brain fog. Write to that level.

  4. Is this the content of the letter sent to all physicians by the CDC? It does not appear to be that.

    “It is acceptable to report COVID-19 on a death certificate as “probable” or “presumed.” In these instances, certifiers should use their best clinical judgement in determining if a COVID–19 infection was likely. However, please note that testing for COVID-19 should be conducted whenever possible.9”

  5. Looking at the probable cause of most chronic disease gives us a bigger picture view of what’s happening. The most likely causes of chronic disease not in order of impact are:
    – Glyphosate and GMO
    – Factory farmed animal meat
    – Vegetables depleted of minerals
    – Toxic Drugs
    – Toxic Dairy Products
    – Hybridized or GMO Gluten

  6. MIchael, Very good comments. And thank you for mentioning all the dietary health risks that we CAN change and improve, which will in turn help fight chronic disease.

  7. I’m a longtime reader and am generally agree with your posts, but I would warn you not to minimize covid-19. My 16 year old son (now 17) and I contracted it early last spring and it has been brutal. I considered both of us very healthy. We eat organic, non-GMO foods, no one in our family is on any medication, we are gluten free and avoid chemicals, you name it. Our kids are unvaccinated and are generally very healthy. The rest of my family didn’t get sick or not much. My youngest daughter had terrible stomach pains, diarrhea, high fever, and kidney pain, but she was not sick to the extent my oldest son and I were. I really didn’t believe I was going to survive it. I stopped breathing three times as I was falling asleep, which led me to be terrified of sleeping (not a good plan when we need sleep to heal from sickness). It destroyed my autonomous nervous system, making my breathing and heart rate unpredictable. I believe at one point I had a small (but very painful) heart attack. My son and I had bad kidney pain for months. Blood vessels are still bursting in my legs. One left a dark purple bruise the size of a softball. My blood pressure was low and now it is extremely high. My son was the picture of health and now his legs buckle when he stands, he’s so damn weak.

    We’ve treated this whole thing naturally and have thrown everything we had at it. No, we didn’t die, but it’s been horrible. I spent months doing breathing exercises all day in order to rebuild my lung capacity and be able to breathe. I took raw garlic, ginger, nettle tea, elderberry, wild mushroom powder, turmeric, fermented foods and lots more in order to avoid blood clots and support my immune system. No matter how sick I was I would get in the sun every day for vitamin D, plus did light yoga and meditation and more to help my blood pressure and circulation. My legs are still in terrible pain and I still wake up with little marble sized bruises where blood vessels are still bursting. It’s much better than before, but this is half a year at this point and we’re still not back to healthy. I can’t ride my bike with my kids anymore, because even that much exercise will make things worse for weeks. My son has become dangerously thin, in part because he lost his sense of taste and so I have to force him to eat even foods he used to love. Both of our bodies ate our muscles while we were fighting this. We’re still fighting to get our health back.

    Despite all of this, I still will not get any vaccine that’s offered and I do not want my kids to get one. But please don’t minimize this. We didn’t die but our lives have been hell for nearly 6 months and we’re not recovered yet. We were very healthy at the start. I can’t explain why some people hardly get sick, some don’t get sick, some get very sick, and some die, but you can’t just count on breezing through it because you’re healthy or young. I honesty believe that if I hadn’t done so much natural treatment to manage my symptoms through this that I would have likely died or at the very least been one of the unfortunate people who lost limbs to blood clots (there are a lot of them). I pray that none of your readers have bad cases too.

    1. Hi Linda. I am so very sorry to hear your story. I know of another very “clean living” family (yoga instructor mom, lots of supplements, etc) who was hit hard by covid.

      Just in an effort to understand, and in no way seeking to blame, I would like to know a few things about your situation, if you are willing to share: 1) Do you know your vitamin D status at the start of your illness – like did you have a recent blood serum read, or were you taking thousands of IUs a day? 2) Did you attempt any strong anti-oxidants at the start of your illness, like Lypospheric Vitamin C or astaxanthin? 3) Were you taking anything else preventive before your illness, like zinc or C or quercetin? 4) Do you know how far you are living to a significant source of EMF, like a cell tower?

      I have deep empathy for your journey and I am only asking to increase my own understanding for the benefit of my family and friends. I wish you a full and rapid recovery.

    2. I too am interested in your answers to Justin’s questions. Thank you so much, and sorry for your ongoing health problems.
      Oh, one more question….no hydroxychloriquin was given to you? Or you didn’t ask for any?
      Thanks!

  8. You’d have to be brain dead to not see the pattern here. France, Germany, Lebanon, Chili, Hong Kong have all had mass protest against their Governments for imposing International laws with the world news outlets more than happy to be the propaganda megaphone.
    This virus temporary hindered those protests .
    It also bribbed our healthcare our healthcare that has slowly been taken over by our government between the HIPAA law and the ACA law that has backmailed our doctors/hospitals by withholding reimbursement not following HHS instructions on our care.

  9. Your comment is awaiting moderation.

    You’d have to be brain dead to not see the pattern here. France, Germany, Lebanon, Chili, Hong Kong have all had mass protest against their Governments for imposing International laws with the world news outlets more than happy to be the propaganda megaphone.
    This virus temporary hindered those protests .
    It also bribbed our healthcare with extra payments to push the lie. The Healthcare industry has slowly been taken over by our government between the HIPAA law and the ACA law that has backmailed our doctors/hospitals by withholding reimbursement not following HHS instructions on our care.

  10. We used the anti-viral Monolaurin for Covid-19 which proved very effective (and safe). We have been using it for nearly 20 years for the cold and flu with excellent results. It contains lauric acid (also found in coconut oil) and mirrors the extraordinary immune properties of mother’s milk. It’s worth looking into. Like with many alternative and natural remedies early onset use with initial symptoms is key. We found homeopathies helpful to navigate the rollercoaster symptoms of Covid as well. And we have since armed ourselves with Quercetin, zinc, and vitamin C. (We routinely take D3 with K2 and calcium-magnesium for best utilization.) Our experience with Covid was fairly mild. One’s best defense with health is a good offense and merits lots of research and a Herculean effort to educate oneself about heathy food, immune-boosting aids, healing remedies, and heath-promoting practices that are safe and vital—rather than depending on the medical profession or health agencies or pharmaceuticals to inform. Know Your Body and always always always continue to research and self-educate!

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