The Medical Certification of Cause of Death (MCCD) report, an initiative rooted in India’s Registration of Births and Deaths (RBD) Act of 1969, is an important tool for understanding mortality patterns. This scheme enables the Office of the Registrar General, India (ORGI), to collect, compile and tabulate medically certified causes of death from data provided by the Chief Registrars of Births and Deaths of each State/Union Territory. However, the efficiency of the MCCD varies across these regions.
Significant Findings from the 2020 MCCD Report
A total of 81.2 lakh deaths from all causes were registered in 2020. Out of these, 22.5% were medically certified deaths. When we consider any medical attention received by the deceased during their terminal illness, this percentage increases to 54.6%. Notably, infants constituted 5.7% of all medically certified deaths.
The report categorizes causes of death into nine groups, which account for approximately 88.7% of the total medically certified deaths. The leading cause was diseases of the circulatory system (32.1%), followed by diseases of the respiratory system (10%), and deaths due to Covid-19 (8.9%). Other significant causes include infectious and parasitic diseases like septicemia and tuberculosis (7.1%), endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (5.8%), injuries, poisoning, and other external causes (5.6%), neoplasms (4.7%), conditions arising during the perinatal period (4.1%), and symptoms, signs, and abnormal clinical findings not elsewhere classified (10.6%).
Impact of Covid-19 on Mortality Rates
Pandemic deaths were separately recorded as “Deaths reported under Codes for Special Purposes (Covid-19 Deaths)” in the MCCD report. It emerged as the third leading cause, accounting for 8.9% of total medically certified deaths at the national level. In contrast, the Union Health Ministry reported 1.49 lakh Covid-19 deaths for the year. As of May 2022, India’s official Covid-19 death toll stands at 5.2 lakh.
Trend of Respiratory Illness Deaths in 2020
The year 2020 saw a significant increase in deaths due to respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia, asthma, and bronchitis, with 1,81,160 fatalities recorded, compared to 1,52,311 in 2019. Those over 70 years of age were particularly susceptible, accounting for 29.4% of total registered medically certified deaths. This was followed by those in the 55-64 age bracket reporting 23.9% deaths, and the 65-69 age group reporting 4.5% of deaths. Overall, the majority of deaths occurred in people over the age of 45, constituting 82.7% of total deaths in this category.
The MCCD report provides valuable data to aid in understanding the causes of mortality within India, highlighting the increase in deaths due to respiratory illnesses in 2020, including those caused by Covid-19. It further underscores the vulnerability of elderly individuals and those with pre-existing conditions to severe health risks.
