Sunshine Sentinel

There were 471 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in Florida in the week ending July 24, making up 9.7 percent of total deaths by all causes in Florida, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 24, there were 4,858 deaths in the state. 19.7 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 19.5 percent were from cancer and 18.4 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.7 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	959	19.7
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	946	19.5
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	471	9.7
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	421	8.7
Cerebrovascular diseases	303	6.2
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	228	4.7
Diabetes mellitus	147	3
Alzheimer's disease	130	2.7
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	69	1.4
Influenza and pneumonia	56	1.2

Cause of Death	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	373	7.7