The number of coronavirus-related deaths is likely higher than recorded in Massachusetts, according to reports, which come after the deadliest day on record in the state since the start of the pandemic.
The total number of deaths in March was 11% higher than average in Massachusetts compared to the past 20 years, according to the Boston Globe, a jump that exceeds the number of reported coronavirus-related fatalities.
The Globe analysis comes as the Department of Public Health reports the highest number of deaths in a single day since the coronavirus outbreak began in Massachusetts. As of Wednesday, another 221 people died, bringing the state's total number of coronavirus-related fatalities to 2,182.
Dr. Michael Mina, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told the Globe that "there is not a doubt," in his mind that the state is under-counting the number of deaths related to the virus.
Since 1999, March saw an average of 5,049 deaths in the state. This year, there were nearly 5,600.
The number of people who died at home spiked 32% last month compared to the 20-year average as well. That could be attributed, in part, to growing fears of going to the hospital or seeing a doctor for other health issues, experts told the Globe.
So far, six out of 60 people who died at home during the month of April tested positive for coronavirus, the medical examiner’s office found.
There are currently 802,583 cases of coronavirus in the nation, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and 44,575 related deaths. There are more than 74,000 cases in New England and over 4,000 related deaths.
