ObjectivesFollowing well-established practices in demography, this article discusses several measures based on the number of COVID-19 deaths to facilitate comparisons over time and across populations.SettingsNational populations in 186 United Nations countries and territories and populations in first-level subnational administrative entities in Brazil, China, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Spain and the USA.ParticipantsNone (death statistics only).Primary and secondary outcome measuresAn unstandardised occurrence/exposure rate comparable to the Crude Death Rate; an indirectly age-and-sex standardised rate that can be derived even when the breakdown of COVID-19 deaths by age and sex required for direct standardisation is unavailable; the reduction in life expectancy at birth corresponding to the 2020 number of COVID-19 deaths.ResultsTo date, the highest unstandardised rate has been in New York, at its peak exceeding the state 2017 crude death rate. Populations compare differently after standardisation: while parts of Italy, Spain and the USA have the highest unstandardised rates, parts of Mexico and Peru have the highest standardised rates. For several populations with the necessary data by age and sex for direct standardisation, we show that direct and indirect standardisation yield similar results. US life expectancy is estimated to have declined this year by more than a year (−1.26 years), far more than during the worst year of the HIV epidemic, or the worst 3 years of the opioid crisis, and to reach its lowest level since 2008. Substantially larger reductions, exceeding 2 years, are estimated for Panama, Peru, and parts of Italy, Spain, the USA and especially, Mexico.ConclusionsWith lesser demand on data than direct standardisation, indirect standardisation is a valid alternative to adjust international comparisons for differences in population distribution by sex and age-groups. A number of populations have experienced reductions in 2020 life expectancies that are substantial by recent historical standards.

The number of CoViD-19 deaths more reliably tracks the progression of the disease across populations than the number of confirmed cases. Substantial age and sex differences in CoViD-19 death rates imply that the number of deaths should be adjusted not just for the total size of the population, but also for its age-and-sex distribution. Following well-established practices in demography, this article discusses several measures based on the number of CoViD-19 deaths over time and across populations. The first measure is an unstandardized occurrence/exposure rate comparable to the Crude Death Rate. To date, the highest value has been in New York, where at its peak it exceeded the state 2017 Crude Death Rate. The second measure is an indirectly standardized rate that can be derived even when the breakdown of CoViD-19 deaths by age and sex required for direct standardization is unavailable. For populations with such breakdowns, we show that direct and indirect standardization yield similar results. Standardization modifies comparison across populations: while New Jersey now has the highest unstandardized rate, Baja California (Mexico) has the highest standardized rate. Finally, extant life tables allow to estimate reductions in life expectancy at birth. In the US, life expectancy is projected to decline this year by more (-.68) than the worst year of the HIV epidemic, or the worst three years of the opioid crisis, and to reach its lowest level since 2008. Substantially larger reductions, exceeding two years, are projected for Ecuador, Chile, New York, New Jersey and Peru.

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