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This year's headlines on COVID-19 featured new research on COVID-related mortality, post-acute sequelae of infection, vaccine safety and potential therapeutics.

After being in the top five leading causes of death in the U.S. since the start of the pandemic, COVID-19 dropped to 10th in 2023, according to provisional CDC data.

Notably, the mortality rate for COVID-19 deaths was 68.9% lower in 2023 than in 2022, CDC researchers reported. Although that change was dramatic, COVID still remains a leading cause of death, the study authors pointed out.

In a related JAMA Viewpoint, the authors noted that COVID-19 peaked in 2020 and 2021 as the third highest cause of mortality and fell to fourth in 2022 before dropping to 10th in 2023.

Meanwhile, an analysis of VA data found that although COVID-19 is becoming less deadly, hospitalized cases are still associated with a higher risk of death than influenza. Among over 11,000 patients hospitalized for either illness during the fall and winter of 2023-2024, 5.7% of patients with COVID-19 died within 30 days of admission versus 4.24% of patients with the flu. Head over to MedPage Today to read more about it.