• HMH
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    fedilink
    -12 years ago

    No, I know my numbers, no surprise here. Also IMO the headline is a classic example of all the fearmongering that’s been going on.

    Nearly 250,000 people under the age of 65 have died of Covid-19 in the United States so far. Around 61,000 of these deaths were in people under the age of 50.

    61,000/250,000 = 61/250 = 24.4%

    So not even 1/4 of those under the age 65 that died of COVID-19 are also younger than 50 years old. And considering all ages, those under age 50 total to

    61,000/1,000,000 = 61 / 1000 = 6.1%

    which is definitely not more than I expected.

    But I guess the main takeaway from the article is:

    Covid-19 has caused a greater deviation from normal death rates among non-seniors than seniors.

    In numbers:

    Since the start of the pandemic there has been a 30% increase in all-cause mortality among US adults ages 18-49, and a 26% increase among adults ages 50-64. The increase has been “just” 17% for adults ages 65 and up.

    Which is commented like this

    However, because the usual mortality rate for seniors is so much higher to begin with, the raw numerical increases in mortality among seniors has been greater, accounting for around two-thirds of all excess deaths since the pandemic erupted on US soil.

    leaving out the flip side, which is that even though mortality for younger people increased more than that for older people, in total it still is not going to amount to much because the absolute mortality numbers for young people are very low.

    This is especially true for actual young people under age 30. If you are under 30 years old, it’s more likely that you die in a traffic accident than with COVID-19…

    I’d rather have an article with a headline like: “Cars deadlier than COVID-19 for young people” posted to c/fuck_cars.