Sunshine Sentinel

There were 136 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Florida in the week ending June 26, making up three percent of total deaths by all causes in Florida, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 26, there were 4,483 deaths in the state. 21.4 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.5 percent were from cancer and 6.6 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.3 percent 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	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Heart disease	958	21.4
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	874	19.5
Cerebrovascular diseases	277	6.2
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	199	4.4
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	160	3.6
Diabetes mellitus	144	3.2
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	136	3
Alzheimer's disease	115	2.6
Influenza and pneumonia	61	1.4
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	54	1.2

Cause of Death	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	328	7.3