JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri notched an increase in life expectancy last year, reversing two years of declines that took place during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even as COVID-19 deaths fell dramatically, other causes of death gained ground, from heart disease to firearms. For the third straight year, deaths exceeded births in Missouri, marking a “natural decrease†in population.
But, in welcome news for health officials, overall life expectancy climbed by more than half a year, from 74.8 years in 2021 to 75.4 years last year. (Before the pandemic, Missouri life expectancy met or exceeded .)
The findings for 2022 were outlined in the Department of Health and Senior Services’ annual Focus vital statistics report, released this week.
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The report said COVID-19 deaths fell more than 44% between 2021 and last year, with nearly two-thirds of last year’s 4,316 COVID deaths occurring as the Omicron variant swept the state in January and February.
Heart disease remained the state’s top killer, with 16,118 deaths noted. The report noted a 2% increase in the rate of heart disease deaths in one year, and a nearly 16% jump in the rate over the course of a decade.
Deaths caused by cancer decreased less than 1%, to 13,065, leaving it as the state’s second leading killer.
Unintentional injury deaths rose to the state’s third leading cause of death as COVID-19 deaths tumbled to fourth position.
Among unintentional deaths, motor vehicle deaths and falls were up in 2022, while drug overdoses, classified as accidental poisonings, stayed relatively stable, decreased by 1% in a year.
Still, the rate of accidental poisonings was up 147% compared to a decade earlier. The state recorded 2,083 accidental poisonings in 2022.
Other top 10 causes of death, including chronic lung disease, Alzheimer’s disease, kidney disease and suicide, all increased last year.
But in addition to the decreases in COVID-19 and cancer deaths, there were also modest reductions in diabetes and stroke deaths, also among the top 10 causes of death.
Homicides were not within the top 10 causes of death, but the number increased 3% last year, to 740. (The City of ºüÀêÊÓƵ, which accounts for less than 5% of Missouri’s total population, recorded 200, or 27%, of the state’s homicides in 2022.)
The rate of firearm-related killings, including suicides and homicides, was up nearly 66% since 2012, jumping another 5% last year.
The state said firearms were used in 66% of suicides and 85% of homicides.
In addition, the state said fentanyl was involved in more than 90% of opioid deaths. The rate of opioid deaths increased 192% in a decade, the report said.
A gap in life expectancy for females and males decreased somewhat last year, but males were still expected to die nearly 6 years earlier than females in Missouri.
Females last year saw a life expectancy of 78.4 years compared with 72.6 years for males, the report said.
The report also examined Missouri live births, down from 2021 with 68,954 recorded births last year. It was the lowest number of births since 1976, the state said.
Infant mortality increased from 5.7 to 6.5 deaths per 1,000 live births, with the death rate jumping for both white non-Hispanic infants and Black non-Hispanic infants, the report said.
The Black non-Hispanic infant death rate of 13.2 deaths per 1,000 live births exceeded the white non-Hispanic rate of 5.5 deaths per 1,000 live births.
Editor’s note: This updated version clarifies the percentage increase in heart disease deaths reflected in the report is based on increases in rates of heart disease deaths, not increases in the number of heart disease deaths. The rate of heart disease deaths increased 2% in a year and 16% in a decade. The number of heart disease deaths increased nearly 3% in a year and more than 18% in a decade.
In addition, the latest version clarifies that the rate of accidental poisonings increased 147% compared to a decade earlier. The number of accidental poisonings in that time increased 153%. This version clarifies that the rate of firearm-related killings was up nearly 66% over a decade, while the number of such deaths increased 70% in that time period.
Last, the rate of opioid deaths increased 192% in a decade; the number of opioid deaths increased 199%.