Minnesota State Wire

There were 18 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Minnesota in the week ending June 25, making up 2.7% of total deaths by all causes in Minnesota, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 25, there were 657 deaths in the state. 17.7% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 24% were from cancer and 7.9% were from COVID-19.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Number of Deaths	% of Total Deaths
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	158	24
Heart disease	116	17.7
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	39	5.9
Alzheimer's disease	35	5.3
Cerebrovascular diseases	35	5.3
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	34	5.2
Diabetes mellitus	27	4.1
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	18	2.7
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 1.5
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 1.5