The leading causes of death among Black residents in the United States in 2023 included diseases of the heart, cancer, unintentional injuries, and stroke. The leading causes of death for African Americans generally reflect the leading causes of death for the entire United States population. However, a major exception is that death from assault or homicide is the seventh leading cause of death among African Americans but is not among the ten leading causes for the general population. Homicide among African Americans The homicide rate among African Americans has been higher than that of other races and ethnicities for many years. In 2023, around 9,284 Black people were murdered in the United States, compared to 7,289 white people. A majority of these homicides are committed with firearms, which are easily accessible in the United States. In 2023, around 13,350 Black people died by firearms. Cancer disparities There are also major disparities in access to health care and the impact of various diseases. For example, the incidence rate of cancer among African American males is the greatest among all ethnicities and races. Furthermore, although the incidence rate of cancer is lower among African American women than it is among white women, cancer death rates are still higher among African American women.

The leading causes of death among the white population of the United States are cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Cardiovascular diseases and cancer accounted for a combined **** percent of all deaths among this population in 2023. In 2020 and 2021, COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death among white people but was the eighth leading cause in 2023. Disparities in causes of death In the United States, there exist disparities in the leading causes of death based on race and ethnicity. For example, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis is the ***** leading cause of death among the white population and the ******* among the Hispanic population but is not among the ten leading causes for Black people. On the other hand, homicide is the ******leading cause of death among the Black population but is not among the 10 leading causes for whites or Hispanics. However, cardiovascular diseases and cancer by far account for the highest share of deaths for every race and ethnicity. Diseases of despair The American Indian and Alaska Native population in the United States has the highest rates of death from suicide, drug overdose, and alcohol. Together, these three behavior-related conditions are often referred to as diseases of despair. Asians have by far the lowest rates of death due to drug overdose and alcohol, as well as slightly lower rates of suicide.

Note: DPH is updating and streamlining the COVID-19 cases, deaths, and testing data. As of 6/27/2022, the data will be published in four tables instead of twelve. The COVID-19 Cases, Deaths, and Tests by Day dataset contains cases and test data by date of sample submission. The death data are by date of death. This dataset is updated daily and contains information back to the beginning of the pandemic. The data can be found at https://data.ct.gov/Health-and-Human-Services/COVID-19-Cases-Deaths-and-Tests-by-Day/g9vi-2ahj. The COVID-19 State Metrics dataset contains over 93 columns of data. This dataset is updated daily and currently contains information starting June 21, 2022 to the present. The data can be found at https://data.ct.gov/Health-and-Human-Services/COVID-19-State-Level-Data/qmgw-5kp6 . The COVID-19 County Metrics dataset contains 25 columns of data. This dataset is updated daily and currently contains information starting June 16, 2022 to the present. The data can be found at https://data.ct.gov/Health-and-Human-Services/COVID-19-County-Level-Data/ujiq-dy22 . The COVID-19 Town Metrics dataset contains 16 columns of data. This dataset is updated daily and currently contains information starting June 16, 2022 to the present. The data can be found at https://data.ct.gov/Health-and-Human-Services/COVID-19-Town-Level-Data/icxw-cada . To protect confidentiality, if a town has fewer than 5 cases or positive NAAT tests over the past 7 days, those data will be suppressed. COVID-19 cases and associated deaths that have been reported among Connecticut residents, broken down by race and ethnicity. All data in this report are preliminary; data for previous dates will be updated as new reports are received and data errors are corrected. Deaths reported to the either the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) or Department of Public Health (DPH) are included in the COVID-19 update. The following data show the number of COVID-19 cases and associated deaths per 100,000 population by race and ethnicity. Crude rates represent the total cases or deaths per 100,000 people. Age-adjusted rates consider the age of the person at diagnosis or death when estimating the rate and use a standardized population to provide a fair comparison between population groups with different age distributions. Age-adjustment is important in Connecticut as the median age of among the non-Hispanic white population is 47 years, whereas it is 34 years among non-Hispanic blacks, and 29 years among Hispanics. Because most non-Hispanic white residents who died were over 75 years of age, the age-adjusted rates are lower than the unadjusted rates. In contrast, Hispanic residents who died tend to be younger than 75 years of age which results in higher age-adjusted rates. The population data used to calculate rates is based on the CT DPH population statistics for 2019, which is available online here: https://portal.ct.gov/DPH/Health-Information-Systems--Reporting/Population/Population-Statistics. Prior to 5/10/2021, the population estimates from 2018 were used. Rates are standardized to the 2000 US Millions Standard population (data available here: https://seer.cancer.gov/stdpopulations/). Standardization was done using 19 age groups (0, 1-4, 5-9, 10-14, ..., 80-84, 85 years and older). More information about direct standardization for age adjustment is available here: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/statnt/statnt06rv.pdf Categories are mutually exclusive. The category “multiracial” includes people who answered ‘yes’ to more than one race category. Counts may not add up to total case counts as data on race and ethnicity may be missing. Age adjusted rates calculated only for groups with more than 20 deaths. Abbreviation: NH=Non-Hispanic. Data on Connecticut deaths were obtained from the Connecticut Deaths Registry maintained by the DPH Office of Vital Records. Cause of death was determined by a death certifier (e.g., physician, APRN, medical

African American males in the United States are much more likely to die from homicide than white males. In 2016, the death rate by homicide for African American males was ** per 100,000 population, compared to a rate of just *** per 100,000 population for white males. African American males are twice as likely to die from firearm-related injuries than white males, with handguns involved in the largest share of homicides in the U.S. Homicide as a leading cause of death While the leading causes of death for black and white residents in the U.S. are similar in many ways, there are two distinct differences. Homicide is not in the leading 10 causes of death among whites, but it is the ******* leading cause of death for blacks, accounting for around ***** percent of all deaths in this group. However, suicide is the ***** leading cause of death among whites, while it is not included in the ** leading causes of death for blacks. Death rates Overall, the death rate in the United States is higher among non-Hispanic whites than any other ethnicity. Furthermore, males across all ethnicities in the U.S. have higher death rates than females. The *** leading causes of death for every ethnicity in the U.S. are cancer and heart disease.

The leading causes of death in Massachusetts are cancer, heart disease, unintentional injury, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory disease. These mortality rates tend to be higher for people of color; and Black residents have a higher premature mortality rate overall and Asian residents have a higher rate of mortality due to stroke.

Heart disease is currently the leading cause of death in the United States. In 2022, COVID-19 was the fourth leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for almost six percent of all deaths that year. The leading causes of death worldwide are similar to those in the United States. However, diarrheal diseases and neonatal conditions are major causes of death worldwide, but are not among the leading causes in the United States. Instead, accidents and chronic liver disease have a larger impact in the United States.

Racial differences

In the United States, there exist slight differences in leading causes of death depending on race and ethnicity. For example, assault, or homicide, accounts for around three percent of all deaths among the Black population but is not even among the leading causes of death for other races and ethnicities. However, heart disease and cancer are still the leading causes of death for all races and ethnicities.

Leading causes of death among men vs women

Similarly, there are also differences in the leading causes of death in the U.S. between men and women. For example, among men, intentional self-harm accounts for around two percent of all deaths but is not among the leading causes of death among women. On the other hand, influenza and pneumonia account for more deaths among women than men.

As of 2023, the third leading cause of death among teenagers aged 15 to 19 years in the United States was intentional self-harm or suicide, contributing to around 17 percent of deaths among this age group. The leading cause of death at that time was unintentional injuries, contributing to around 38.6 percent of deaths, while 20.7 percent of all deaths in this age group were due to assault or homicide. Cancer and heart disease, the overall leading causes of death in the United States, are also among the leading causes of death among U.S. teenagers. Adolescent suicide in the United States In 2021, around 22 percent of students in grades 9 to 12 reported that they had seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. Female students were around twice as likely to report seriously considering suicide compared to male students. In 2023, New Mexico had the highest rate of suicides among U.S. teenagers, with around 28 deaths per 100,000 teenagers, followed by Idaho with a rate of 22.5 per 100,000. The states with the lowest death rates among adolescents are New Jersey and New York. Mental health treatment Suicidal thoughts are a clear symptom of mental health issues. Mental health issues are not rare among children and adolescents, and treatment for such issues has become increasingly accepted and accessible. In 2021, around 15 percent of boys and girls aged 5 to 17 years had received some form of mental health treatment in the past year. At that time, around 35 percent of youths aged 12 to 17 years in the United States who were receiving specialty mental health services were doing so because they had thought about killing themselves or had already tried to kill themselves.

Heart disease (HD) remains the leading cause of death among Mississippians; however, despite the importance of the condition, trends in HD mortality in Mississippi have not been adequately explored. This study examined trends in HD mortality among adults in Mississippi from 1980 through 2013 and further examined these trends by race and sex. We used data from Mississippi Vital Statistics (1980–2013) to calculate age-adjusted HD mortality rates for Mississippians age 25 or older. Cases were identified using underlying cause of death codes from the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9: 390–398, 402, 404–429) and Tenth Revision (ICD-10), including I00-I09, I11, I13, and I20-I51. Joinpoint software was used to calculate the average annual percent change in HD mortality rates for the overall population and by race and sex. Overall, the age-adjusted HD mortality rate among Mississippi adults decreased by 36.5% between 1980 and 2013, with an average annual percent change of -1.60% (95% CI -2.00 to -1.30). This trend varied across subgroups: HD mortality rates experienced an average annual change of -1.34% (95% CI -1.98 to -0.69) for black adults; -1.60% (95% CI -1.74 to -1.46) for white adults; -1.30% (95% CI -1.50 to -1.10) for all women, and -1.90% (95% -2.20 to -1.50) for all men. From 1980 to 2013, there was a continuous decrease in HD mortality among adult Mississippians. However, the magnitude of this reduction differed by race and sex.

Lower respiratory infections were the leading cause of death in Africa in 2021. Lower respiratory infections accounted for 8.6 percent of all deaths in Africa that year, followed by malaria, which was responsible for 6.5 percent of deaths. Although HIV is not one of the leading causes of death worldwide, it remains within the top 10 leading causes of death in Africa. As of 2023, the top 15 countries with the highest prevalence of new HIV infections are all found in Africa. HIV/AIDS HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is an infectious sexually transmitted disease that is transmitted via exposure to infected semen, blood, vaginal and anal fluids and breast milk. HIV weakens the human immune system, resulting in the affected person being unable to fight off opportunistic infections. HIV/AIDS was the eighth leading cause of death in Africa in 2021, accounting for around 4.6 percent of all deaths, or around 405,790 total deaths. HIV Treatment Although there is currently no effective cure for HIV, death can be prevented by taking HIV antiretroviral therapy (ART). Access to ART worldwide has increased greatly over the last decade; however, there are still barriers to access in some of the countries most impacted by HIV. The African countries with the highest percentage of HIV infected children who were receiving antiretroviral treatment were Eswatini, Lesotho, and Uganda.

This statistic shows the number of deaths from the leading causes of death among U.S. adults aged 65 years and older in 2014, by ethnicity, per 100,000 population. In 2014, the rate of death from heart disease was highest among those aged 65 years and older who were non-Hispanic Black.

ObjectiveTo examine changes in cause-specific Years of Life Lost (YLL) by age, race, and sex group in the USA from 1990 to 2014.Methods60 million death reports from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) were categorized by age group, sex, race, and cause of death. YLL were calculated using age-specific life expectancies. Age groups were: infants <1, children 1–19, adults 20–64, and older adults 65+.ResultsBlacks have historically experienced more years of life lost than whites or other racial groups in the USA. In the year 1990 the YLL per 100,000 population was 21,103 for blacks, 14,160 for whites, and 7,417 for others. Between 1990 and 2014 overall YLL in the USA improved by 10%, but with marked variations in the rate of change across age, race, and sex groups. Blacks (all ages, both sexes) showed substantial improvement with a 28% reduction in YLL, compared to whites (all ages, both sexes) who showed a 4% reduction. Among blacks, improvements were seen in all age groups: reductions of 43%, 48%, 28%, and 25% among infants, children, adults, and older adults, respectively. Among whites, reductions of 33%, 44%, and 18% were seen in infants, children, and older adults, but there was a 6% increase in YLL among white adults. YLL increased by 18% in white adult females and declined 1% in white adult males. American Indian/Alaska Native women also had worsening in YLL, with an 8% increase. Asian Pacific Islanders consistently had the lowest YLL across all ages. Whites had a higher proportion of YLL due to overdose; blacks had a higher proportion due to homicide at younger ages and to heart disease at older ages.ConclusionsRace-based disparities in YLL in the USA since 1990 have narrowed considerably, largely as a result of improvements among blacks compared to whites. Adult white and American Indian / Alaskan Native females have experienced worsening YLL, while white males have experienced essentially no change. If recent trajectories continue, adult black/white disparities in YLL will continue to narrow.

THIS DATASET WAS LAST UPDATED AT 7:11 AM EASTERN ON DEC. 1

OVERVIEW

2019 had the most mass killings since at least the 1970s, according to the Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killings Database.

In all, there were 45 mass killings, defined as when four or more people are killed excluding the perpetrator. Of those, 33 were mass shootings . This summer was especially violent, with three high-profile public mass shootings occurring in the span of just four weeks, leaving 38 killed and 66 injured.

A total of 229 people died in mass killings in 2019.

The AP's analysis found that more than 50% of the incidents were family annihilations, which is similar to prior years. Although they are far less common, the 9 public mass shootings during the year were the most deadly type of mass murder, resulting in 73 people's deaths, not including the assailants.

One-third of the offenders died at the scene of the killing or soon after, half from suicides.

About this Dataset

The Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killings database tracks all U.S. homicides since 2006 involving four or more people killed (not including the offender) over a short period of time (24 hours) regardless of weapon, location, victim-offender relationship or motive. The database includes information on these and other characteristics concerning the incidents, offenders, and victims.

The AP/USA TODAY/Northeastern database represents the most complete tracking of mass murders by the above definition currently available. Other efforts, such as the Gun Violence Archive or Everytown for Gun Safety may include events that do not meet our criteria, but a review of these sites and others indicates that this database contains every event that matches the definition, including some not tracked by other organizations.

This data will be updated periodically and can be used as an ongoing resource to help cover these events.

Using this Dataset

To get basic counts of incidents of mass killings and mass shootings by year nationwide, use these queries:

Mass killings by year

Mass shootings by year

To get these counts just for your state:

Filter killings by state

Definition of "mass murder"

Mass murder is defined as the intentional killing of four or more victims by any means within a 24-hour period, excluding the deaths of unborn children and the offender(s). The standard of four or more dead was initially set by the FBI.

This definition does not exclude cases based on method (e.g., shootings only), type or motivation (e.g., public only), victim-offender relationship (e.g., strangers only), or number of locations (e.g., one). The time frame of 24 hours was chosen to eliminate conflation with spree killers, who kill multiple victims in quick succession in different locations or incidents, and to satisfy the traditional requirement of occurring in a “single incident.”

Offenders who commit mass murder during a spree (before or after committing additional homicides) are included in the database, and all victims within seven days of the mass murder are included in the victim count. Negligent homicides related to driving under the influence or accidental fires are excluded due to the lack of offender intent. Only incidents occurring within the 50 states and Washington D.C. are considered.

Methodology

Project researchers first identified potential incidents using the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Supplementary Homicide Reports (SHR). Homicide incidents in the SHR were flagged as potential mass murder cases if four or more victims were reported on the same record, and the type of death was murder or non-negligent manslaughter.

Cases were subsequently verified utilizing media accounts, court documents, academic journal articles, books, and local law enforcement records obtained through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. Each data point was corroborated by multiple sources, which were compiled into a single document to assess the quality of information.

In case(s) of contradiction among sources, official law enforcement or court records were used, when available, followed by the most recent media or academic source.

Case information was subsequently compared with every other known mass murder database to ensure reliability and validity. Incidents listed in the SHR that could not be independently verified were excluded from the database.

Project researchers also conducted extensive searches for incidents not reported in the SHR during the time period, utilizing internet search engines, Lexis-Nexis, and Newspapers.com. Search terms include: [number] dead, [number] killed, [number] slain, [number] murdered, [number] homicide, mass murder, mass shooting, massacre, rampage, family killing, familicide, and arson murder. Offender, victim, and location names were also directly searched when available.

This project started at USA TODAY in 2012.

Contacts

Contact AP Data Editor Justin Myers with questions, suggestions or comments about this dataset at jmyers@ap.org. The Northeastern University researcher working with AP and USA TODAY is Professor James Alan Fox, who can be reached at j.fox@northeastern.edu or 617-416-4400.

In 2023, the FBI reported that there were 9,284 Black murder victims in the United States and 7,289 white murder victims. In comparison, there were 554 murder victims of unknown race and 586 victims of another race. Victims of inequality? In recent years, the role of racial inequality in violent crimes such as robberies, assaults, and homicides has gained public attention. In particular, the issue of police brutality has led to increasing attention following the murder of George Floyd, an African American who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer. Studies show that the rate of fatal police shootings for Black Americans was more than double the rate reported of other races. Crime reporting National crime data in the United States is based off the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s new crime reporting system, which requires law enforcement agencies to self-report their data in detail. Due to the recent implementation of this system, less crime data has been reported, with some states such as Delaware and Pennsylvania declining to report any data to the FBI at all in the last few years, suggesting that the Bureau's data may not fully reflect accurate information on crime in the United States.

In 2020, the death rate for heart disease among non-Hispanic Black adults aged 25 to 44 years was 39.5 per 100,000 population. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. This statistic shows the death rate for heart disease among people aged 25 to 44 in the United States from 2000 to 2020, by race/ethnicity.

Top 10 enriched signaling pathways in selected gene modules.

In the United States, Black people have higher rates of gun homicide than White people across all age groups. As of 2022, gun homicide rates were highest among Black people aged between 15 and 24 years, at ***** gun homicides per 100,000 of the population. In comparison, there were only **** gun homicides per 100,000 of the White population within this age range. However, the risk for gun homicide was greatest among all adolescents and adults between the ages of 15 to 44 in that year. The impact of guns on young Americans In the last few years, firearms have become the leading cause of death for American children and teenagers aged one to 19 years old, accounting for more deaths than car crashes and diseases. School shootings also remain on the rise recently, with the U.S. recording ** times as many school shootings than other high-income nations from 2009 to 2018. Black students in particular experience a disproportionately high number of school shootings relative to their population, and K-12 teachers at schools made up mostly of students of color are more likely to report feeling afraid that they or their students would be a victim of attack or harm. The right to bear arms Despite increasingly high rates of gun-related violence, gun ownership remains a significant part of American culture, largely due to the fact that the right to bear arms is written into the U.S. Constitution. Although firearms are the most common murder weapon used in the U.S., accounting for approximately ****** homicides in 2022, almost **** of American households have at least one firearm in their possession. Consequently, it is evident that firearms remain easily accessible nationwide, even though gun laws may vary from state to state. However, the topic of gun control still causes political controversy, as the majority of Republicans agree that it is more important to protect the right of Americans to own guns, while Democrats are more inclined to believe that it is more important to limit gun ownership.

In 2022, the mortality rate for cardiovascular disease among Black adults in the United States aged 35 years and older was around 597 per 100,000 population. In comparison, the cardiovascular disease mortality rate among Asians or Pacific Islanders was 271 per 100,000 population. Heart disease was the leading cause of death in the United States in 2022.

The killing of Tyre Nichols in January 2023 by Memphis Police Officers has reignited debates about police brutality in the United States. Between 2013 and 2024, over 1,000 people have been killed by police every year. Some of the most infamous examples include the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 and the shooting of Breonna Taylor earlier that year. Within the provided time period, the most people killed by police in the United States was in 2024, at 1,375 people. Police Violence in the U.S. Police violence is defined as any instance where a police officer’s use of force results in a civilian’s death, regardless of whether it is considered justified by the law. While many people killed by police in the U.S. were shot, other causes of death have included tasers, vehicles, and physical restraints or beatings. In the United States, the rate of police shootings is much higher for Black Americans than it is for any other ethnicity, and recent incidents of police killing unarmed Black men and women in the United States have led to widespread protests against police brutality, particularly towards communities of color. America’s Persistent Police Problem Despite increasing visibility surrounding police violence in recent years, police killings have continued to occur in the United States at a consistently high rate. In comparison to other countries, police in the U.S. have killed people at a rate three times higher than police in Canada and 60 times the rate of police in England. While U.S. police have killed people in almost all 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia, New Mexico was reported to have the highest rate of people killed by the police in the United States, with 8.03 people per million inhabitants killed by police.

In 2021, about 571.3 out of every 100,000 men of Hispanic origin died in the United States. In that year, the death rate for all ethnic groups stood at 1118.2 per 100,000 for men, and 970.8 per 100,000 for women.

The Plague of Justinian was an outbreak of bubonic plague that ravaged the Mediterranean and its surrounding area, between 541 and 767CE. It was likely the first major outbreak of bubonic plague in Europe, and possibly the earliest pandemic to have been recorded reliably and with relative accuracy. Contemporary scholars described the symptoms and effects of the disease in detail, and these matched descriptions of the Black Death and Third Pandemic, leading most historians to believe that this was bubonic plague. It was also assumed that the plague originated in sub-Saharan Africa, before making its way along the Nile to Egypt, and then across the Mediterranean to Constantinople. In 2013, scientists were able to confirm that Justinian's Plague was in fact Yersinia pestis (the bacteria which causes bubonic plague), and recent theories suggest that the plague originated in the Eurasian Steppes, where the Black Death and Third Pandemic are also thought to have originated from, and that it was brought to Europe by the Hunnic Tribes of the sixth century. Plague of Justinian The pandemic itself takes its name from Emperor Justinian I, who ruled the Byzantine Empire (or Eastern Roman Empire) at the time of the outbreak, and who actually contracted the disease (although he survived). Reports suggest that Constantinople was the hardest hit city during the pandemic, and saw upwards of five thousand deaths per day during the most severe months. There are a multitude of sources with differing estimates for the plague's death toll, with most ranging between 25 and 100 million. Until recently, scholars assumed that the plague killed between one third and 40 percent of the world's population, with populations in infected regions declining by up to 25 percent in early years, and up to 60 percent over two centuries. The plague was felt strongest during the initial outbreak in Constantinople, however it remained in Europe for over two centuries, with the last reported cases in 767. Pre-2019 sources vary in their estimates, with some suggesting that up to half of the world's population died in the pandemic, while others state that it was just a quarter of the Mediterranean or European population; however most of them agree that the death toll was in the tens of millions. Historians have also argued about the plague's role in the fall of the Roman Empire, with opinions ranging from "fundamental" to "coincidental", although new evidence is more aligned with the latter theories. Challenging theories As with the recent studies which propose a different origin for the disease, one study conducted by researchers in Princeton and Jerusalem calls into question the accuracy of the death tolls estimated by historians in the 19th and 20th centuries. In 2019, L. Mordechai and M. Eisenberg published a series of papers suggesting that, although the plague devastated Constantinople, it did not have the same impact as the Black Death. The researchers argue that modern historians have taken a maximalist approach to the death tolls of the pandemic, and have applied the same models of distribution to Justinian's Plague as they believe occurred during the Black Death; however there is little evidence to support this. They examine the content and number of contemporary texts, as well archaeological, agricultural and genetic evidence which shows that the plague did spread across Europe, but did not seem to cause the same societal upheaval as the Black Death. It is likely that there will be further investigation into this outbreak in the following years, which may shed more light on the scale of this pandemic.