Statistics released this morning by the Central Statistics Office show that the number of registered deaths in the state in 2020 was 31,765.
That represents an increase of 631 or just over 2% year on year.
The number of deaths with Covid as an “underlying cause” was 1,672, the CSO said. The number of registered deaths in the final quarter of 2020 was lower than for the 4th quarter of 2019.
Over 60% of deaths were due to cancer, and there have already been concerns that these will increase due to the concentration of resources on the virus.
Just over 5% of all registered deaths were Covid related.
Of the 1,672 Covid related deaths, just over 80% were among people aged 75 and older.