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It's not just COVID-19 deaths, raw death numbers (as measured by death certificates, you cannot cremate/bury people without one) are down as well -- this report
by signal11 7y ago
It's not just COVID-19 deaths, raw death numbers (as measured by death certificates, you cannot cremate/bury people without one) are down as well -- this report has some evidence, including lower business in at crematoriums[1]. This is likely due to the very stringent lockdown in India, and the somewhat underrated fact that traffic collisions and accidents kill huge numbers of people every day in India.
That said, while lower death rates (India's seem to be about half of the world's death rate) are to be celebrated, there are confounding factors.
1) The reported death count are mostly hospital deaths only. Home deaths aren't counted.
2) As the article notes, mis-diagnosing is a problem especially outside hospitals.
But if there's something that genuinely is reducing the death rate, then that's obviously a huge opportunity to study and learn from.
[1] https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-s-lower-death-rates-seem-to-defy-global-coronavirus-trend-11587723007584.html https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-s-lower-death-rate...
- kumarvvr 7y agoIIRC, during the lockdown, every death is to be notified to the authorities.
- gindely 7y agoIs that not normally the case? The pp says that every burial or cremation requires a death certificate, and who else but the authorities has the right to issue a death certificate?
- kumarvvr 7y agoThe process for getting a death certificate usually takes a couple of weeks to a month or so. And normally, for natural deaths, there is nothing to be reported to anyone. But during lockdown, reporting is to be done immediately.