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Indicator: Mortality Causes by Race/Ethnicity and Income

Data and Data Discussion provided by Sustainable Seattle

Figure 1: Total Deaths by Region, King County

Figure 3: Total Death Rates, by Health Planning Area, King County

Figure 2: Total Deaths by Race/Ethnicity, King County

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Upstream Indicators
  •   Freedom from Discrimination --- Indicator information is based on three surveys conducted in 2001 2004, and 2007. There were no significant changes over the three survey years for the county as a whole. However, there are differences in reporting of experiencing of discrimination according to age, race/ethnicity,and smaller geographic areas.  (view data graph)
  •   Educational Background --- The educational level of King County residents has steadily increased over the past 25 years with more people getting high school diplomas, some college experience, and bachelor's degrees.   (view data graph)
  •   Health Insurance Coverage --- In King County, 15.5% of adult residents, 190,000 lacked health insurance in 2004. This is the highest percentage recorded since data began being collected in 1991. (Chapter 11, Health of King County 2006)   (view data graph)
  •   Income Distribution --- In the two decades between 1979 and 2007, income has shifted from the four lower income groups to the highest income group.   (view data graph)
  •   Pollution in Neighborhoods --- It appears that some neighborhoods, particularly those with lower income levels and greater racial diveristy, are more at risk of pollution from Toxic Release Facilities, hazardous waste sites, and other sources.  (view data graph)
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Downstream Indicators
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Related Goals

Sustainability Snapshot:

Over the past century, the major causes of death have shifted from infectious to chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Differences in death rates between different socioeconomic groups have persisted over this same time period, with people in lower income groups having higher death rates, indicating a link between socioeconomic status and health. Researchers have found an inverse, stepwise relationship such that for each incremental decrease in socioeconomic position, there is a corresponding increase in overall mortality.

Sustainability Trend:

Among the racial/ethnic groups, the total mortality rate between 1990 and 2003 in King County declined significantly for all but American Indian/Alaska Natives but disparities in the age-adjusted death rates between different racial/ethnic groups in King County remained the same.

Data Discussion

The Indicator Defined

Total deaths by race/ethnicity, King County, Three Year Rolling Averages, 1990-2003; Leading causes of death by race/ethnicity, King County, 1999-2003 combined.

Data Interpretation/Evaluation

Between 1990 and 2003, the age-adjusted total death rate declined significantly in both King County and the four health regions (Figure 1).

Among the racial/ethnic groups, the total mortality rate between 1990 and 2003 declined significantly for all but American Indian/Alaska Natives(Figure 2). Disparities in the age-adjusted death rate between racial/ethnic groups in King County remained. Averaged over 2001-2003, the rates for African Americans (945.9)and American Indian/Alaska Natives (1128.2) were significantly higher while the rates for Asian and Pacific Islanders (546.6) and Hispanic/Latinos (542) were significantly lower than the white rate (707.1).

In 2003, the three leading causes of death in King County were cancer, heart disease, and stroke. The leading causes of death differed in different age groups (data not shown). In general, unintentional injury, cancer, homicide, and suicide ranked higher among the younger age groups while heart disease, cancer, and other chronic diseases ranked higher among the older age groups. AIDS went from being the number one killer among males age 25-44 in 1996 to number four in 2003, and number five for both males and females.

The leading causes of death also varied among the racial/ethnic groups. In general, unintentional injury, homicide,and diabetes ranked relatively higher among the minority populations. Conditions of the perinatal period were the ninth leading cause of death for African Americans and the sixth for Hispanic/Latinos.

Age-adjusted death rate also varied with neighborhood poverty level as reflected in the data for health planning areas (Figure 3). Averaged over 1999-2003, the rates were lower in general for Eastside communities, and higher for the South Region and Seattle than the average rate for the county.

Data Source and Limitations

This data is reported by the Seattle King County Health Department and re-published here by Sustainable Seattle.   

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