Garden State Times

There were 134 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in New Jersey during the week ending May 15, 2021, a 18.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 15, 2021, there were 1,464 deaths in the state. 22.1% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.6% were from cancer and 17.6% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.4% 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	Deaths in Week Ending May 15, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 8, 2021
Heart disease	324	333
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	302	271
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	134	165
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	123	145
Cerebrovascular diseases	63	77
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	47	38
Alzheimer's disease	39	42
Diabetes mellitus	35	37
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	23	24
Influenza and pneumonia	16	23

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 15, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 8, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	93	100