Significant Reduction in Additional Winter Deaths Welcomed

The significant reduction in additional winter deaths for 2018-2019 has been welcomed by the national charity for older people, Age Scotland but they have cautioned against complacency as previous spikes could be linked to extreme cold weather.

Figures released today (15th October) by the National Records of Scotland show a 57% seasonal decrease in additional deaths between December 2018 and March 2019 compared to the previous year.

The spike in additional winter deaths the previous year had been described as “staggering” by Age Scotland and is likely to be linked to the extreme cold weather over that period such as the “Beast from the East”. Age Scotland believes that this year's reduction can, in part, be attributed to a milder winter and is warning that figures could rebound unless action is taken to address the underlying causes of the deaths.

The charity is calling for more work to be done to ensure that older people have homes which are properly insulated and suitably warm in extreme cold weather, that the poorest pensioner households have enough income to use their heating and afford hot food, and have all received the flu vaccine as early as possible.

It is estimated that more than 120,000 households in Scotland were not claiming the pension credit benefit which they were entitled to, which would have boosted their income and meant that they also missed out on Cold Weather Payments, designed to pay out £25 for each week of very cold weather. The annual sum of unclaimed pension credit in Scotland was nearly £332 million last year.

Age Scotland research has also highlighted that 6 in 10 single pensioner households struggle to pay their energy bills.

Age Scotland’s Head of Policy Adam Stachura said:

“On the face of it this significant reduction in additional winter deaths is good news and when compared to the previous year where the most common cause of death was pneumonia and flu they are now considerably lower.

“However, the two spikes in additional winter deaths over the last decade seem to have coincided with extremely cold weather which means that it is vitally important to ensure that older people, particularly those on low income and in poor health, are better prepared to stay warm and vaccinated against the flu.

“To do this we must redouble efforts to ensure in advance of future extreme cold weather older people have access to home energy efficiency programmes, are aware of how to maximise their incomes with benefits such as Pension Credit so that they can afford to heat their homes and eat hot food, and get the flu vaccine as early as possible to protect against that risk.

“This year's flu vaccine awareness campaign already appears to be doing a good job in boosting take up but it is important that people do book these in with their GP practice as soon as possible. We would also encourage any older person, especially those on a low state pension, to call the Age Scotland helpline on 0800 12 44 222 for a free benefit and entitlement check to make sure they are not missing out on Pension Credit.”