Garden State Times

There were less than 10 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in New Jersey in the week ending June 24, making up less than 0.8% of total deaths by all causes in New Jersey, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 24, there were 1,256 deaths in the state. 24% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.5% were from cancer and less than 0.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.3% 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	302	24
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	270	21.5
Cerebrovascular diseases	50	4
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	49	3.9
Diabetes mellitus	39	3.1
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	30	2.4
Alzheimer's disease	25	2
Influenza and pneumonia	14	1.1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 0.8
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	< 10	< 0.8

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	79	6.3