Golden State Today

There were 84 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in California in the week ending June 26, making up 1.6 percent of total deaths by all causes in California, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 26, there were 5,283 deaths in the state. 21 percent of deaths were caused by heart disease, 20.7 percent were from cancer and 2.9 percent were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2 percent 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	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Cerebrovascular diseases	327	6.2
Alzheimer's disease	284	5.4
Diabetes mellitus	195	3.7
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	194	3.7
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	84	1.6
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	74	1.4
Influenza and pneumonia	72	1.4
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	70	1.3
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	1,094	20.7
Heart disease	1,108	21

Cause of Death	Cause of Death	% of Total Deaths
Alzheimer disease and dementia	485	9.2