One in eight deaths last year was Covid related

Last year 12 percent of deaths in the Netherlands were caused by Covid-19, the respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Cancer was still the main cause of death in the country, followed by cardiovascular disease, Statistics Netherlands reported based on preliminary figures.

A total of 168,678 people died in the Netherlands last year, 16,800 more than in 2019. Over 20 thousand people died of Covid-19. Some 47 thousand people (almost 28 percent) died of cancer, and 37 thousand or 22 percent died of cardiovascular disease.

Up to 2019, the standardized mortality decreased every year in all age groups. Last year, mortality increased in all age groups, mainly as a result of the new coronavirus. At the same time, mortality from other causes of death decreased. This has to do with people who had poor health dying of Covid-19 instead of their other health problems.

The number of non-natural cause of death, like accidents or violence, has been increasing since 2012 and last year stood at almost 52 per 100 thousand deaths. "The increase is entirely due to more people dying as a result of an accidental fall," the stats office said. Mortality from accidental falls has been increasing since 2000. The stats office did not speculate on why.