Official Site of The State of New Jersey
Deaths among Persons Aged 85 Years and Older
Summary Indicator Report Data View Options
Why Is This Important?
In a typical year, about 35% of all deaths among New Jersey residents are of persons aged 85 years and over.
Definition
Deaths among persons aged 85 years and over
Data Sources
- Death Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, New Jersey Department of Health
(https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/) - Population Estimates, State Data Center, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development
(https://www.nj.gov/labor/labormarketinformation/demographics/population-household-estimates/) - Underlying Cause of Death, CDC WONDER On-line Database, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(https://wonder.cdc.gov/Deaths-by-Underlying-Cause.html)
How the Measure is Calculated
| Numerator: | Number of deaths among persons aged 85 years and over |
| Denominator: | Estimated number of persons in the population aged 85 years and over |
How Are We Doing?
The death rate among those aged 85 years and over was generally declining through 2019, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused a sharp (22%) increase in 2020 followed by an 11% decline in 2021. The death rate was highest among Whites, followed by Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians. In 2021, the leading causes of death among adults aged 85 years and over were heart disease, cancer, COVID-19, Alzheimer's disease, and stroke.
How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
Prior to 2020, the death rate among New Jersey residents aged 85 years and over was about the same as the national rate. In 2020, New Jersey's rate rose above the US rate due to the early onset of COVID-19 in New Jersey. In 2021, the New Jersey rate declined and was below the US rate.
Available Services
NJDHS Division of Aging Services: [http://nj.gov/humanservices/doas/services/]
More Resources
Heart Disease: [https://www.cdc.gov/heart-disease/about/index.html] COVID-19: [https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html] Cancer: [https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/] Alzheimer's Disease and Healthy Aging: [https://www.cdc.gov/aging/index.html] Stroke: [https://www.cdc.gov/stroke/about/index.html] COPD: [https://www.cdc.gov/copd/index.html]
Health Program Information
NJDOH Chronic Disease Prevention & Control Services: [http://www.state.nj.us/health/fhs/chronic/index.shtml] NJDOH Cancer Initiatives: [http://nj.gov/health/ces/]