Coronavirus (COVID-19) death toll in the Benelux region May 2022

As of May 15, 2022, the total number of deaths due to COVID-19 in the Benelux countries was around 55 thousand casualties. Since the first death occurred on February 6, 2020 in the Netherlands, new casualties were reported daily in the Benelux. The death toll amounted to approximately 31.7 thousand in Belgium and 22.3 thousand in the Netherlands.

Why such a high death rate?

Although it is hard to fully explain the different death rates among countries, certain explanations have been put forward more than others. Indeed, as COVID-19 casualties are higher in older patients, countries could face different death tolls due to the different age structures of their population. For instance, 70 percent of deaths in the Netherlands occurred in people aged over 70, and 51 percent of deaths in Belgium occurred in nursing homes. However, in 2020, the Belgian population was not particularly old, especially when compared to countries such as Germany or Japan.

Number of cases in the Benelux region

As of May 15, 2022, around 12.4 million people have tested positive for the coronavirus in the Benelux, from which eight million in the Netherlands and 4.1 million in Belgium.