For the first time since February 2020, there is no excess mortality in the EU. According to Eurostat, three years after the pandemic, in February 2023, the indicator fell two percent below its initial value (average number of deaths in the same period from 2016 to 2019). In comparison, the excess mortality rate was eight percent higher in February 2022 (39,000 extra deaths) and six percent higher in February 2021 (26,000 extra cases).
In February 2020 – shortly before the outbreak of Corona – the value was still minus three percent. The excess mortality rate remained high in the last quarter of 2022, with plus 12 percent in October, plus nine percent in November and plus 19 percent in December. That was the highest recorded value in 2022. According to Eurostat, there was a sharp drop in January 2023 to plus three percent. The market then fell further to the negative value of February this year.
Greece and Cyprus have the highest excess mortality rates
Figures published on Tuesday by the European statistics agency Eurostat, which are based on the weekly collection of death data, showed that by February 2023 two-thirds of EU countries had no longer recorded excessive deaths. Of the countries still recording an increase in deaths, Greece and Cyprus had the highest excess mortality rates (both 12 percent higher than the national monthly average for 2016-2019), followed by Portugal at 6 percent, the Netherlands and France at 4 percent each , Malta with plus two percent and Italy, Ireland and Austria with each plus one percent.
While excess mortality has been observed almost everywhere in Europe over the past three years, peak levels and outbreak intensity vary greatly from country to country. In an EU comparison, Austria was largely above average. The largest peaks in deaths in the EU were recorded in April 2020 (25 percent more), November 2020 (40 percent more), April 2021 (21 percent more) and November 2021 (27 percent more).
Source: Krone
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