COVID-19 dropped to 10th leading cause of US deaths in 2023

After several years of being among the leading causes of death in the U.S., COVID-19 was the 10th-leading cause of death in 2023, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In 2023, there were nearly 3.1 million deaths that occurred in the U.S. Among the deaths, 76,446 were attributed in some way to COVID-19, either as an underlying or contributing cause of death. In 2022, there were 245,614 deaths attributed to COVID-19.

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COVID-19 was the fourth-leading cause of death in 2022 and third-leading cause in 2021. The CDC said that COVID-19 was a cause of 460,000 deaths in 2021.

The 68.9% decline in COVID-19-related fatalities in 2023 helped drop the U.S. death rate by 6.1%. In 2022, there 798.8 people who died per population of 100,000. In 2023, that number dropped to 750.4 out of 100,000.

Heart disease leading cause of death

Heart disease, cancer and unintentional injuries remained the top causes of death in the U.S. in 2023. Heart disease was attributed to 680,909 deaths, followed by cancer with 613,331 deaths and unintentional injuries following with 222,518 fatalities.

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Here is a look at the top 10 leading causes of death in 2023:

1. Heart disease
2. Cancer
3. Unintentional injury
4. Stroke
5. Chronic lower respiratory diseases
6. Alzheimer's disease
7. Diabetes
8. Kidney disease
9. Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis
10. COVID-19