The Letter by Patrick Heuveline (1) usefully extends our analysis (2) to include the estimated effects of the COVID-19 epidemic on US excess mortality. It demonstrates that the high relative mortality conditions that we documented pre-epidemic extend to the epidemic itself. These results underscore the importance of identifying and correcting the conditions that are contributing to excess mortality in the United States.
Footnotes
The author declares no competing interest.
References
- 1.Heuveline P., The COVID-19 pandemic adds another 200,000 deaths (50%) to the annual toll of excess mortality in the United States. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 10.1073/pnas.2107590118 (2021). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- 2.Preston S. H., Vierboom Y. C., Excess mortality in the United States in the 21st century. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 118, e2024850118 (2021). [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]