Garden State Times

There were 85 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in New Jersey in the week ending May 22, 2021, making up 5.8% of total deaths by all causes in New Jersey, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 22, 2021, there were 1,456 deaths in the state. 22.5% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.9% were from cancer and 10.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 7.6% 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	327	22.5
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	304	20.9
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	85	5.8
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	69	4.7
Cerebrovascular diseases	64	4.4
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	45	3.1
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	44	3
Alzheimer's disease	37	2.5
Diabetes mellitus	26	1.8
Influenza and pneumonia	13	0.9

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	110	7.6