Summarised by Centrist
Excess deaths remain elevated long after the pandemic’s peak. This raises questions for countries like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, where COVID deaths were initially low, but post-2021 excess deaths skyrocketed.
In Japan, excess deaths now exceed 27%, largely driven by heart failure and circulatory diseases, yet these conditions explain only part of the overall increase.
Similar trends are seen in Singapore, where excess deaths rarely drop below 20%, and even the UK and US continue to see elevated mortality rates. These patterns challenge the “pull-forward” theory, which predicted a trough in deaths after vulnerable populations were disproportionately affected during the pandemic.
The causes remain unclear. Factors like healthcare disruptions, long COVID, stress, and possibly vaccination rollouts are under the lens.
Yet, no major independent investigations have been launched to explore these ongoing trends. While Asian countries were previously praised for low COVID deaths, their post-pandemic mortality spike remains largely ignored.
Editor’s note: For more on excess deaths in New Zealand and around the world, see here.
