For a quarter century, the deaths of older Americans from heart rhythm disorders and stroke held to a grim but stable rhythm — until, between 2018 and 2021, that rhythm broke. A new analysis of 733,476 deaths spanning 25 years reveals not only an alarming acceleration in mortality, but a geography of suffering that falls unevenly across gender, race, and place. The pattern invites a deeper question: what changed, and for whom, and why did the body politic fail to notice in time?
U.S. Deaths from Heart Arrhythmias and Stroke Rise Sharply Among Seniors
733,476 deaths among U.S. adults aged 65+ attributed to arrhythmias and cerebrovascular disease between 1999-2023, with accelerating mortality in recent years.