The risk of dying related to Covid19, compared to other health risks

Deaths related to COVID-19, while modest overall, varied considerably by age.

Deaths as a percentage of all cause deaths during the time period under study ranged from <0.01% in children in Germany, Portugal and Netherlands, to as high as 41.65% for men aged over 80 years in England and Wales.

The percentage of the population who died from COVID-19 was less than 0.2% in every age group under the age of 80. In each country, over the age of 80, these proportions were: England and Wales 1.27% males, 0.87% females; Italy 0.6% males, 0.38% females; Germany 0.13% males, 0.09% females; France 0.39% males, 0.2% females; Portugal 0.2% males, 0.15% females; and Netherlands 0.6% males, 0.4% females.

Interpretation: Mortality rates from COVID-19 remains low including when compared to other common causes of death and will likely decline further while control measures are maintained. These data may help people contextualise their risk and policy makers in decision-making.

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.08.07.20170225v1