A Million COVID Deaths Cause Rampant Mental Distress

1 in 8 Deaths from 2020 to 2021 in the U.S. resulted from COVID-19, behind only heart disease and cancer, according to a recent study in JAMA Internal Medicine. This amounts to over 1,000,000 deaths from the pandemic in the U.S. alone. Many of these deaths were unexpected and occurred in isolation from family. This caused a dramatic rise in bereavement. These untimely and tragic deaths put those who lost loved ones at risk of depression, mental distress, and other mental health challenges.

A wealth of peer-reviewed research is revealing the social repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic. In several related studies, a team of sociologists—Shawn Bauldry, Emily Smith-Greenaway, Rachel Margolis, Ashton Verdery, Haowei Wang, and other collaborators—conducted research that offers insight into mental health outcomes among those who lost a loved one in the pandemic. Their research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, projects that more than nine million people in the U.S. have lost a close relative to COVID-19. They found that those left behind are vulnerable to a range of negative mental health outcomes.

The researchers show that COVID-19 deaths cause a lot of grief compared to many other types of death. COVID-19 deaths are perceived to be “bad deaths:” these deaths are often preceded by pain and distress, tend to occur in hospital settings where patients are isolated from family, and happen suddenly. The perception that these deaths were premature and untimely magnifies distress among family members left behind. The grief and distress associated with loss were exacerbated by the stress of the ongoing pandemic, long periods of social isolation, and economic precarity.

This same research team compared spousal deaths in the early COVID-19 pandemic to spousal deaths just before the pandemic in their recent article in The Journals of Gerontology. The researchers found that COVID-19 widows and widowers faced higher rates of depression, loneliness, and other mental health challenges when compared to pre-pandemic widows and widowers.

Certain groups have experienced a disproportionate share of mental health distress due to losing loved ones in the pandemic. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show that some populations experienced higher mortality rates from COVID-19 than others. The elderly and low-income persons were more at risk of experiencing a death from COVID-19. Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans saw higher death rates in the pandemic. In addition, those residing in rural settings and those who were uninsured suffered higher mortality rates.

Many health outcomes related to COVID-19 are improving, but there are nine million left behind who are at substantial risk of health problems correlated with losing a loved one. The bereaved face mental health problems associated with their loss, including grief, depression, and mental distress. These mental health challenges can lead to declines in physical health and increase one’s risk of death.

Inequities in access to health care are at the core of why certain demographics experienced divergent mortality rates and loss of loved ones during the pandemic. Health care inequities contribute to untreated and undertreated preexisting conditions among certain demographics. Additionally, these same health care inequities shape access to mental health services for the bereaved.

As deaths directly attributed to COVID-19 wane, it is essential that we address the mental health crisis in the United States that was exacerbated by the pandemic. The nine million in the U.S. who have lost a loved one can benefit from financial, social, and mental health support. It is essential to ensure that all Americans have access to health insurance and affordable healthcare, including treatment for mental health conditions.

Roscoe Scarborough, Ph.D. is interim chair of the Department of Social Sciences and associate professor of sociology at College of Coastal Georgia. He is an associate scholar at the Reg Murphy Center for Economic and Policy Studies. He can be reached by email at rscarborough@ccga.edu.