Majority of Stanly Covid deaths were older residents

Published 4:13 pm Wednesday, February 23, 2022

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Roughly 84 percent of the 263 people who have died as a result of contracting the coronavirus over the last two years were at least 60 years old, according to a report presented to the board of commissioners by Stanly County Public Health Director David Jenkins Monday night.

The data provided to the commissioners, which they had requested and which breaks down the deaths by specific age ranges, provides the fullest picture yet of the pandemic’s impact on the county. The health department regularly provides Covid updates, but only includes cumulative death totals.

The information Jenkins presented to the commissioners tallied 263 deaths, though the count now stands at 264.

Residents 80 to 89 have accounted for 70 deaths, the highest share of any age group, followed closely by people 70-79, which have accounted for 64 deaths. Of the 22 vaccinated people who have died from the virus, each one of them was at least 60 years of age.

This is fairly consistent with state and national data, which have shown older people are more susceptible to hospitalization and death. About 75 percent of all deaths in North Carolina have come from people 65 and older.

Even though the vast majority of Stanly County deaths have come from the elderly, the virus can still be deadly for younger people under certain circumstances. Forty-one residents ages 30 to 59 died after getting infected, accounting for 16 percent of the total. None of these people had been vaccinated, Jenkins said, underscoring the importance of getting the added layer of protection.

Only 38 percent of residents 25 to 49 have been fully vaccinated in Stanly, according to state health data, well below the state mark of 59 percent. Only 44 percent of the total population is fully vaccinated.

No residents younger than 30 have died from the virus.

Of the 264 people who have lost their lives to COVID-19, 63 percent (166) have died since January 2021, when vaccines were first made widely available to the public.

Though new cases and hospitalizations have fallen over the past few weeks as the county has largely recovered from the omicron surge, 29 people died from the virus in January, according to data from the Stanly County Health Department, the second-highest total after August 2020, when 32 people died. So far in February, 13 people have died.

 

 

 

 

 

About Chris Miller

Chris Miller has been with the SNAP since January 2019. He is a graduate of NC State and received his Master's in Journalism from the University of Maryland. He previously wrote for the Capital News Service in Annapolis, where many of his stories on immigration and culture were published in national papers via the AP wire.

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