Mortality Rates Soar in Finland During November-December 2021, Contributing to Falling Life Expectancy

In 2022, life expectancy for Finns was still 0.4 years shorter than in 2019. This can be attributed to the significant number of elderly deaths during the corona wave in November-December of the same year. The mortality rate for people over 70 was one-third higher during that time compared to other months of the year. However, there are signs that the mortality rate is falling to pre-pandemic levels at the beginning of this year.

Despite initially lower mortality rates at the start of the pandemic, Finland and Iceland eventually experienced higher mortality rates later on due to a significant number of elderly deaths during the corona wave in November-December of 2021. Recently published statistics from Eurostat show that life expectancy has returned to pre-pandemic levels in more than 18 countries in the European Union, but Finland is one of the seven countries where this has not yet occurred.

The aging population of Finland has a significant impact on mortality rates, including corona mortality. Due to weakened immune responses in the elderly, corona infections can be fatal for them despite vaccinations. Although corona deaths among the elderly do not affect life expectancy as much as younger populations, they can still have an impact if the numbers of deaths are high.

In contrast to Finland, Iceland managed to reduce the mortality rate significantly among people over 70 by implementing strict measures at the beginning of