Two US studies in JAMA Network Open today detail disparities in COVID-19 deaths in 2020, one showing higher mortality rates among racial minorities, and the other finding fewer infections but more deaths among patients with schizophrenia and other mood disorders.Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders at highest riskIn the first study, Harvard University researchers analyzed race, educational attainment, and COVID-19 death data from 219.1 million Americans 25 years or older in 2020, before the emergence of the Delta (B1617.2) variant.
Average age was 51.3 years, and 51.7% were women.Of the 219.1 million adults, 376,125 (0.17%) died of COVID-19. Age-adjusted death rates ranged from 54.4 per 100,000 people among Asian women with some college to