Eighty-six more people died from COVID-19 in Vermont over the last three years than previously known, according to the state Department of Health, which reported the additional deaths on Friday following an audit of its data system.
Seventy-three of the undisclosed deaths occurred in 2022, and more than a third — 30 — fell in the final four months of last year. The additions raise last year’s death total from 309 to 382, a 25 percent increase, and bring the overall death toll in Vermont to 877.
In a press release, Health Commissioner Mark Levine expressed regret for the reporting delay but said that because the deaths were spread out over time, “we are confident this would not have had an impact on the trajectory of the data or on our approach to the pandemic.”
Vermont’s updated fatality rate of 140 people per 100,000 remains one of the lowest in the nation, trailing only Hawaii.
The previously undisclosed deaths will be included in the state’s Open Geodata Portal when it is updated on January 11. As of Wednesday, 49 people were hospitalized with the virus, and two were in the intensive care unit.
The department blamed the oversight in part on a “reduction in staff capacity as it scaled back from peak emergency operation.”
COVID-19 deaths are reported to the health department by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner but must be manually entered into the state’s epidemiology surveillance system, a press release said. After an analyst noticed that several reports had not been entered, the department reviewed all its data and found dozens of other reports that were not processed correctly.
“Our data team are among the heroes of Vermont’s pandemic response,” Levine said in the press release. “Nonetheless, we are reviewing our systems to ensure data oversights like this one can be avoided, while supporting these dedicated public health workers.”
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