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Although, as of early March 2021, we have not yet seen, for Los Angeles County, recent mortality numbers for all causes of death, we do know that more than 10,000 lives were lost to COVID-19 by the end of 2020. Compariing this with past mortality numbers may rank COVID-19 as one of the leading, if not the leading, cause of death in Los Angeles County.
Number of Deaths. Age-adjusted death rate* in parentheses.
| Year | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Coronary heart disease 11,211 (102.9) |
Coronary heart disease 11,115 (103.1) |
Coronary heart disease 11,385 (107.6) |
Coronary heart disease 11,062 (109.0) |
Coronary heart disease 11,827 (116.7) |
| #2 | Alzheimer's disease 4,179 (38.7) |
Alzheimer's disease 4,002 (36.9) |
Alzheimer's disease 3,800 (35.6) |
Stroke 3,205 (32.0) |
Stroke 3,300 (32.8) |
| #3 | Stroke 3,749 (35.0) |
Stroke 3,666 (34.6) |
Stroke 3,668 (35.4) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,884 (28.4) |
COPD 2,874 (29.2) |
| #4 | COPD 2,927 (27.6) |
COPD 2,996 (28.5) |
COPD 2,857 (27.7) |
COPD 2,673 (27.2) |
Lung cancer 2,687 (27.5) |
| #5 | Diabetes Mellitus 2,658 (24.7) |
Lung cancer 2,657 (25.2) |
Lung cancer 2,851 (27.6) |
Lung cancer 2,617 (26.6) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,577 (25.1) |
| #6 | Lung cancer 2,556 (24.0) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,480 (23.1) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,373 (22.7) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,291 (22.9) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,264 (22.5) |
| #7 | Pneumonia / influenza 1,957 (18.4) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,066 (19.4) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,124 (20.3) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,071 (20.7) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,172 (21.9) |
| #8 | Colorectal cancer 1,449 (13.4) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,442 (13.2) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,539 (14.2) |
Colorectal cancer 1,372 (13.6) |
Colorectal cancer 1,376 (13.8) |
| #9 | Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,412 (12.5) |
Colorectal cancer 1,358 (12.7) |
Colorectal cancer 1,482 (14.0) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,323 (12.5) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,315 (12.8) |
| #10 | Breast cancer (female) 1,172 (19.4) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,119 (18.8) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,072 (18.4) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,212 (21.4) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,138 (20.5) |
*Age-adjusted rate per 100,000. The death rates for 2008-2009 were recalculated using new population estimates based on the 2010 Census, therefore, death rates in this report may differ from rates previously published.
Source: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
Number of Deaths. Age-adjusted death rate* in parentheses.
| Year | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Coronary heart disease 11,677 (114.7) |
Coronary heart disease 11,913 (121.5) |
Coronary heart disease 12,635 (137.8) |
Coronary heart disease 12,725 (135.1) |
Coronary heart disease 13,428 (145.6) |
| #2 | Stroke 3,360 (33.5) |
Stroke 3,256 (33.6) |
Stroke 3,278 (36.2) |
Stroke 3,301 (35.5) |
Stroke 3,280 (35.9) |
| #3 | Lung cancer 2,809 (28.7) |
Lung cancer 2,908 (31.0) |
Lung cancer 2,941 (32.8) |
Lung cancer 2,958 (33.0) |
Lung cancer 2,910 (32.9) |
| #4 | COPD 2,646 (26.8) |
COPD 2,874 (30.5) |
COPD 2,622 (29.6) |
COPD 2,904 (31.9) |
COPD 2,889 (32.3) |
| #5 | Alzheimer's disease 2,476 (24.0) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,346 (23.6) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,242 (24.7) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,125 (22.0) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,190 (24.2) |
| #6 | Diabetes Mellitus 2,204 (22.4) |
Diabetes Mellitus 2,196 (22.9) |
Pneumonia / influenza 1,964 (21.9) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,097 (22.4) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,171 (23.6) |
| #7 | Pneumonia / influenza 2,048 (20.3) |
Pneumonia / influenza 2,062 (21.3) |
Diabetes Mellitus 1,894 (21.0) |
Diabetes Mellitus 1,964 (21.3) |
Alzheimer's disease 2,121 (22.6) |
| #8 | Colorectal cancer 1,397 (13.9) |
Colorectal cancer 1,400 (14.5) |
Colorectal cancer 1,285 (14.0) |
Colorectal cancer 1,388 (15.0) |
Colorectal cancer 1,365 (15.0) |
| #9 | Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,275 (12.4) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,246 (12.5) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,171 (12.0) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,246 (12.9) |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 1,134 (11.9) |
| #10 | Breast cancer (female) 1,170 (21.1) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,143 (21.2) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,109 (21.1) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,166 (22.5) |
Breast cancer (female) 1,071 (20.8) |
*Age-adjusted rate per 100,000. The death rates for 2008-2009 were recalculated using new population estimates based on the 2010 Census, therefore, death rates in this report may differ from rates previously published.
Source: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
Years of Potential Life Lost.† Number of deaths, death rates not included in this table
| Year | 2017 | 2016‡ | 2015‡ | 2014‡ | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Coronary heart disease 51,515 |
--- | --- | --- | Coronary heart disease 53,380 |
| #2 | Drug overdose 27,743 |
--- | --- | --- | Homicide 23,993 |
| #3 | Suicide 26,016 |
--- | --- | --- | Motor vehicle crash 23,660 |
| #4 | Motor vehicle crash 25,915 |
--- | --- | --- | Drug overdose 22,412 |
| #5 | Homicide 24,769 |
--- | --- | --- | Suicide 21,641 |
| #6 | Liver disease/ cirrhosis 21,604 |
--- | --- | --- | Liver disease/ cirrhosis 21,064 |
| #7 | Diabetes Mellitus 19,102 |
--- | --- | --- | Lung cancer 15,707 |
| #8 | Stroke 16,085 |
--- | --- | --- | Diabetes Mellitus 14,625 |
| #9 | Lung cancer 13,427 |
--- | --- | --- | Stroke 14,146 |
| #10 | Breast cancer 12,224 |
--- | --- | --- | Breast cancer 13,098 |
† "Years of Potential Life Lost" represent total years lost to all persons who died before the age of 75. If it is expected that everyone typically lives to at least age 75, people who die younger are considered to have died prematurely. To measure this, L.A. County Dept. of Public Health (Public Health) uses "Years of Potential Life Lost, Before Age 75." For example, someone who died at age 63 is measured as having lost 12 years of expected life, whereas, someone who died at age 80 is measured as having lost no additional years of expected life. For deaths during the year, Public Health calculated years of expected life lost for all who died before age 75. By adding up the total years of potential life lost for each cause of death, Public Health identified the leading causes of premature death.
‡ Data for these years were not available from the Los Angeles County Dept. of Public Health.
Source: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
Years of Potential Life Lost.† Number of deaths, death rates not included in this table
| Year | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Coronary heart disease 52,263 |
Coronary heart disease 51,374 |
Coronary heart disease 57,607 |
Coronary heart disease 59,440 |
Coronary heart disease 59,821 |
| #2 | Homicide 24,905 |
Homicide 25,255 |
Homicide 28,442 |
Homicide 31,270 |
Homicide 37,087 |
| #3 | Motor vehicle crash 22,895 |
Motor vehicle crash 21,732 |
Suicide 22,390 |
Motor vehicle crash 22,017 |
Motor vehicle crash 28,195 |
| #4 | Liver disease/ cirrhosis 20,788 |
Drug overdose 20,590 |
Motor vehicle crash 19,750 |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 21,515 |
Suicide 22,177 |
| #5 | Suicide 20,683 |
Suicide 19,907 |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 19,425 |
Suicide 20,835 |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 19,749 |
| #6 | Drug overdose 18,206 |
Liver disease/ cirrhosis 18,024 |
Drug overdose 18,652 |
Drug overdose 20,484 |
Drug overdose 19,269 |
| #7 | Lung cancer 16,858 |
Lung cancer 17,086 |
Lung cancer 18,100 |
Lung cancer 17,295 |
Lung cancer 16,862 |
| #8 | Diabetes Mellitus 16,041 |
Diabetes Mellitus 15,046 |
Stroke 14,709 |
Stroke 15,554 |
Diabetes Mellitus 15,650 |
| #9 | Stroke 14,855 |
Stroke 14,838 |
Breast cancer 12,999 |
Diabetes Mellitus 14,697 |
Stroke 15,197 |
| #10 | Breast cancer 12,843 |
Breast cancer 12,551 |
Diabetes Mellitus 12,221 |
Breast cancer 13,466 |
Breast cancer 12,346 |
† "Years of Potential Life Lost" represent total years lost to all persons who died before the age of 75. If it is expected that everyone typically lives to at least age 75, people who die younger are considered to have died prematurely. To measure this, L.A. County Dept. of Public Health (Public Health) uses "Years of Potential Life Lost, Before Age 75." For example, someone who died at age 63 is measured as having lost 12 years of expected life, whereas, someone who died at age 80 is measured as having lost no additional years of expected life. For deaths during the year, Public Health calculated years of expected life lost for all who died before age 75. By adding up the total years of potential life lost for each cause of death, Public Health identified the leading causes of premature death.
