Diabetes Death Rates by County, New Mexico, 2018-2020

Why Is This Important?

In 2020, diabetes was the 7th leading cause of death for New Mexicans and the 7th leading cause in the U.S. In 2020, Coronavirus disease was the third leading cause of death in New Mexico. This pushed diabetes from sixth leading cause of death in previous years, to seventh leading cause of death in 2020. Diabetes complications, which are costly to individuals, families and to society, include premature death, cardiovascular disease, blindness, end stage kidney disease, and lower extremity amputations. People with diabetes are two to four times more likely to develop cardiovascular disease and stroke; about 65% of deaths in people with diabetes nationwide are due to these conditions. Costs of diabetes extend beyond medical costs, such as costs due to lower productivity, disability and loss of productive life due to premature death, and care-taking by family members. Effective and accessible diabetes prevention and management programs and resources are necessary to reverse the increasing rates of diabetes in our communities and reduce diabetes complications.

Definition

The diabetes death rate: the number of deaths attributed to diabetes per 100,000 people, age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. population (except for rates by age group). Diabetes deaths include those with ICD10 codes E10 - E14 and as underlying cause of death.

Data Notes

• Rates have been age-adjusted using the direct method and the 2000 U.S. standard population.
• 2018-2020 combined years. Some rows in data tables may include a note of Unstable or Very Unstable. Those rates labeled Unstable were statistically unstable (RSE >0.30 and <0.50), and may fluctuate widely across time periods due to random variation (chance). Those rates labeled Very Unstable were extremely unstable (RSE >0.50). These values should not be used to infer population risk. Some Very Unstable rates have been suppressed.

Data Sources

• New Mexico Death Data: Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics (BVRHS), Epidemiology and Response Division, New Mexico Department of Health.
  (https://www.nmhealth.org/about/erd/bvrhs/vrp/)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC WONDER Online Database
  (http://wonder.cdc.gov)
• New Mexico Population Estimates: University of New Mexico, Geospatial and Population Studies (GPS) Program.
  (http://gps.unm.edu/)

How the Measure is Calculated

Data Issues

• Death Certificate Data

  Death certificate information is submitted electronically by funeral directors, who obtain demographic information from an informant, a close family member of the decedent. The NMDOH Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics (BVRHS) does annual trainings for funeral directors and local registrars and the death certificate information goes through extensive scrutiny for completeness and consistency. The cause of death is certified by the decedent's physician or the physician that attended the death. Accidental and suspicious deaths are certified by the Office of the Medical Investigator. When death certificates are received the cause of death literals are keyed into software locally by the BVRHS, then shipped to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) where they are machine coded into ICD-10 cause-of-death codes. NCHS returns the ICD-10 codes to BVRHS where the death records are updated.

• New Mexico Population Estimates

  All population estimates apply to July 1 of the selected year. These estimates are considered the most accurate estimates for the state of New Mexico and should match those found on the University of New Mexico Geospatial and Population Studies website. Estimates include decimal fractions. Census tract population estimates were summed to produce County and Small Area population estimates. Population estimate totals may vary due to rounding. Population estimates for previous years are occasionally revised as new information becomes available. When publishing trend data, always be sure that your rates for earlier years match current rates on NM-IBIS that have been calculated with the most up-to-date population estimates.

Health Topic Pages Related to: Diabetes Deaths

• Chronic Diseases and Conditions
• Leading Causes of Death