Not just the elderly: As Covid-19 continues to kill, figures show increase in working-age mortality
Russia is seeing far more deaths in 2020 than in 2019, and it’s not just the old and vulnerable. This year, it has seen a significant increase in mortality in general, with more able-bodied people dying than before.
According to Evgeny Bryun, the Ministry of Health’s chief narcologist, Russia saw an increase in working-age deaths in the first three months of the year, compared to the same period in 2019. From January to March 2019, 36,584 died. This figure grew to 37,346 in 2020.
Bryun also noted a significant increase in mortality in April, with Moscow registering 11,846 deaths, compared to the previous year’s number of just over 10,000.
According to Bryun, the additional fatalities can’t be entirely blamed on Covid-19. When it comes to the death of younger Russians, he points the finger mainly at addiction, particularly to alcohol. “[When] sudden deaths occur, and the person has a cardiac arrest, as a rule, pathologists suggest that the person was abusing [alcohol],” he explained.
Mortality figures are unlikely to improve in the upcoming months. Last week, Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova announced that Russia was expecting a significant increase in fatalities in May. Her words were echoed by Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.
Also on rt.com ‘What are those white crosses?’ Badges to ‘scare off’ coronavirus prompt dress-code debate in Russian parliament“Despite the positive factors, we see that hospitalization figures are still high. Moreover, the number of deaths from coronavirus in May will be significantly higher than in April, since the peak of the virus occurred in early May. It is obvious that the hardest phase will be in May,” the mayor said.
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