COVID-19 Fatality Rate for Seniors More Than Twice as High as Flu

By the Editors

For seniors in Indiana, the COVID-19 infection fatality ratio was 2.5 times higher than the estimated fatality ratio for seasonal influenza, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Researchers estimated nearly 190,000 cumulative infections from a population-based statewide sample. They calculated a COVID-19 infection fatality ratio of 0.26% among noninstitutionalized residents aged 12 and older. Infection fatality ratios were higher among those aged 60 and older (1.71%) and non-whites (0.59%). The infection fatality ratio among those aged 65 and older for seasonal influenza, the authors report, is 0.8%.