Thread by @paisleyvsim

With a 4th wave "inevitable" per Quebec, underway in Ontario and building in BC and AB (over 500 cases just yesterday!)

NOW is the time to revisit the recommendations of the🤯😷 Excess All-Cause Mortality report by @MoriartyLab et al

#COVID19 #ableg #onpoli #bcpoli #assnat
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Canada has reported 26,688 COVID-related deaths - 13th highest amongst the 38 OECD nations, though our experience has been less intense than other G7 nations.

But are we reporting deaths coherently?

No.

Were lessons learned from previous waves to change this?

Also no.
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It's assumed that 80% of deaths were in long-term care homes *DOUBLE* the OECD avg of 40%

The @MoriartyLab team concludes COVID-related deaths are **UNDERCOUNTED** by at least 6,000

That's at least 2/3rds of COVID deaths in communities outside of LTC settings MISSED
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What does 'in community' mean?

It's most likely that these under-reported deaths were clinically frail older adults who died at home, and working people btwn 45 to 64, likely essential workers, recent immigrants and people living in multi-generational homes
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How was this missed?

Decentralized federalism means that provs/terrs record deaths in their own datasets, using their own cause of death attributions, on their own timelines.

None of this is helped by COVID often being asymptomatic + varied postmortem testing practices
/5

71% of Canadians have at least one dose, and we're now entering a #DeltaVariant driven 4th wave - a "pandemic of the unvaccinated"

Why does how we count deaths matter now that we're entering a period of (likely) lower COVID-related deaths?
/6

No vaccine available to under 12s?
Transmission will continue

Workers facing a patchwork or NO #paidsickleave?
Working while sick will continue

Provs changing/severely reducing testing availability?
Asymptomatic transmission will continue

COVID-deaths will continue.
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Kids, essential works, low-income people, and frail elderly people will continue to bear the largest burden of #COVID19 due to structural economic, social and racial inequalities.
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This report came out nearly six weeks ago, why bring it up now?

1) Because it's been literally burning a hole in my brain since I read it

and

2) Death attribution and testing trends all influence resource allocation - what we count and how we count matters.
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So what can be done?

1) Read the full Excess All-Cause Mortality report here: rsc-src.ca/sites/default/…

2) Advocate for permanent #paidsickleave: in #ontario 3-day paid coverage is set to expire Sept. 27, and #BCNDP is crafting paid-leave legislation now

3) Get vaccinated.
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You can read more about our @IRPP COVID stringency index and related research on COVID in Canada here: centre.irpp.org/data/covid-19-…

/fin

Also: shout out to all the Excess All-Cause Mortality report authors and @RSCTheAcademies

@MoriartyLab
@EemaanKaur
@vitality_md
@NoLore
and Anna E. Boczula