Golden State Today

There were 237 deaths with COVID-19 listed as a contributing cause reported in California during the week ending July 2, 2022, a 10.7% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending July 2, 2022, there were 4,639 deaths in the state. 21.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 22.9% were from cancer and 8.8% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 11% 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 July 2, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 25, 2022
Heart disease	988	1,008
Cerebrovascular diseases	303	322
Alzheimer's disease	293	309
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	237	214
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	200	212
Diabetes mellitus	189	201
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	170	149
Influenza and pneumonia	70	55
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	55	84
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	1,061	1,142

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending July 2, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 25, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	509	514