COVID's hidden victims: New orphans and essential workers

A pair of new studies describe COVID-19–related parental loss and occupational death rates, with a global analysis finding that children were more likely to be orphaned if they live in the poorest countries with high rates of noncommunicable diseases, and the other showing that essential workers in California had higher rates of coronavirus deaths and excess deaths than those with less workplace exposure.Poor countries, high noninfectious disease ratesIn a study published yesterday in PLOS Global Public Health, a team led by Australian National University (ANU) researchers used an online calculator to estimate the total number of orphans per COVID-19 death for 139 countries from the start of the pandemic to Sep 28, 2021.The risk of COVID-19 death leading to orphaned children varied widely around the world, with the highest risk in countries with below-median per-capita gross domestic product (GDP) (1.56 orphans per death), relative to countries with higher GDPs (0.09).

African countries were particularly hard hit. For example, in Angola, two children were orphaned per COVID-19 death, compared with one orphan for every eight COVID deaths in Australia (0.13 orphans per COVID-19 death).Other factors influencing risk included a high prevalence of poverty and a high percentage of reproductive-aged people (15 to 49 years old) with noninfectious diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

Second-dose COVID-19 vaccination was tied to a lower risk of orphanhood."The risk of children being orphaned per COVID-19 death, alongside fertility rate, is due to there being a greater share of COVID-19 deaths among younger persons," the researchers wrote. "Our findings underscore the need for uniform vaccination coverage across the globe,