Mortality rates in Australia increased 3.2 percent in 2021, with alcohol-induced deaths at the highest rate in a decade, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Lauren Moran, director of mortality statistics at ABS, said while the rate of deaths in 2021 had increased on the previous year, it was still lower than the 2019 pre-pandemic death rate.
The top five causes of death in Australia in 2021 were heart disease, dementia, stroke, lung cancer, and chronic lower respiratory diseases.
The death rate difference between heart disease and dementia has continued to narrow. From 2012 to 2021, deaths due to dementia increased 53.8 percent and now sits at the highest level since record keeping began….