State mortality · CDC NCHS 2017
Arizona - Mortality Statistics
42,928 deaths in 2017 across 10 tracked causes, at a state average age-adjusted rate of 50.1 per 100,000.
Data updated 2017-12-31
- 42,928
- Deaths, 2017
- Heart disease
- Leading cause
- −10%
- vs national avg
- 50.1
- Avg age-adj /100K
Look up or compare states and causes
Side-by-side state comparisons and cause lookups use the same CDC NCHS figures shown on this page. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.
Below national mean rate
What this means: Arizona's mean age-adjusted rate runs 10% below the national figure (50.1 vs 55.5/100K). A rate below the national average is a positive aggregate sign, though it summarizes every tracked cause into one number, so it's worth scanning the individual causes for outliers.
Lower-rate third on mean age-adjusted leading causes (2017). Heart disease still leads locally. Rates are CDC WONDER age-adjusted; see /methodology#corpus-placement.
Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death (CDC NCHS / NVSS), 2017. Age-adjusted rates allow fair comparison across states.
FIPS 04 · CDC WONDER 2017
Mortality desk for Arizona
2017: 42,928 deaths across 10 tracked causes at 50.1/100K mean age-adjusted · corpus #39/51 · 10% below US avg. Nearest rate peer: Florida (-0.1/100K).
Arizona in the lower-rate third
In 2017, CDC WONDER tallied 42,928 deaths in Arizona across 10 tracked cause-of-death categories. Heart disease led the record with 12,398 deaths at an age-adjusted rate of 141.9 per 100,000, placing Arizona at #42 of 51 states for this cause, where a higher rank corresponds to a higher rate. The top five causes accounted for 35,450 deaths (82.6% of the state total). That mean rate lands in the lower third of the 2017 corpus.
A rate below the national average is a positive aggregate sign, though it summarizes every tracked cause into one number, so it's worth scanning the individual causes for outliers.
Mean-rate neighbourhood around Arizona
5 Causes That Lead Mortality Here
The five leading causes account for 35,450 deaths (82.6% of all deaths) in Arizona.
Arizona's Full Mortality Breakdown (2017)
| # | Cause of death | Deaths | % of total | Age-adj /100K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heart disease | 12,398 | 28.9% | 141.9 |
| 2 | Cancer | 12,008 | 28.0% | 135.8 |
| 3 | Unintentional injuries | 4,184 | 9.7% | 56.2 |
| 4 | CLRD | 3,802 | 8.9% | 42.7 |
| 5 | Alzheimer's disease | 3,058 | 7.1% | 35.1 |
| 6 | Stroke | 2,681 | 6.2% | 30.8 |
| 7 | Diabetes | 2,054 | 4.8% | 23.7 |
| 8 | Suicide | 1,327 | 3.1% | 18.2 |
| 9 | Influenza and pneumonia | 876 | 2.0% | 10.1 |
| 10 | Kidney disease | 540 | 1.3% | 6.2 |
Do the biggest causes also carry the highest rate in Arizona?
10 causes of death in Arizona plotted by total deaths against the age-adjusted rate per 100,000. Death count and age-adjusted rate move together across Arizona's causes (r=1.00) -- the causes with the most deaths here also tend to carry the highest per-capita rate.
Causes of death in Arizona by deaths and age-adjusted rate: Heart disease, 12398 deaths, 141.9 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Cancer, 12008 deaths, 135.8 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Unintentional injuries, 4184 deaths, 56.2 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. CLRD, 3802 deaths, 42.7 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Alzheimer's disease, 3058 deaths, 35.1 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Stroke, 2681 deaths, 30.8 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Diabetes, 2054 deaths, 23.7 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Suicide, 1327 deaths, 18.2 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Influenza and pneumonia, 876 deaths, 10.1 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Kidney disease, 540 deaths, 6.2 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate.
The Trend Line Behind This Data
Show the full 19-year data table (deaths, rate, year-over-year change)
| Year | Total Deaths | Avg Age-Adj Rate | Deaths YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 31,796 | 65.0 | - |
| 2000 | 31,816 | 63.6 | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 31,895 | 61.8 | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 33,389 | 63.3 | +4.7% |
| 2003 | 33,744 | 62.1 | +1.1% |
| 2004 | 33,285 | 59.4 | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 35,010 | 60.1 | +5.2% |
| 2006 | 34,885 | 57.7 | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 34,149 | 54.8 | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 34,323 | 53.4 | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 34,218 | 51.8 | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 34,828 | 51.5 | +1.8% |
| 2011 | 36,095 | 51.2 | +3.6% |
| 2012 | 36,337 | 49.9 | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 37,440 | 49.7 | +3.0% |
| 2014 | 37,982 | 48.5 | +1.4% |
| 2015 | 40,509 | 49.8 | +6.7% |
| 2016 | 41,949 | 49.7 | +3.6% |
| 2017 | 42,928 | 50.1 | +2.3% |
Nearby States & Comparisons
Compare mortality data with states bordering Arizona (2017).
| State | Deaths (Top Cause) | Leading Cause | Age-Adj Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona (this state) | 12,398 | Heart disease | 141.9 |
| California | 62,797 | Heart disease | 142.9 |
| Colorado | 7,829 | Cancer | 131.0 |
| Nevada | 6,417 | Heart disease | 199.3 |
| New Mexico | 3,896 | Heart disease | 151.4 |
| Utah | 3,749 | Heart disease | 150.2 |
States with similar CDC WONDER rates
Two non-border peer sets for Arizona in 2017, drawn from the lower-rate third's nearest neighbors on published age-adjusted rates. Border neighbors stay in the table above.
States near this mean leading-cause rate
Nearest jurisdictions by mean age-adjusted rate across leading causes (50.1/100K here), excluding bordering states.
Closest match: suicide rate (X60-X84)
Nearest jurisdictions by suicide age-adjusted rate, excluding the mean-rate peer set and bordering states.
Data source & methodology
Rates are per 100,000 population. Age-adjusted rates use the year 2000 US standard population. Data covers 1999-2017. Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death (CDC NCHS / NVSS).
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
According to the CDC National Center for Health Statistics, PlainHealthData's mortality figures are rendered directly from 9,690 official state-year-cause records (NCHS Leading Causes of Death for calendar years 1999-2017). June 2026 is when this portal last verified that frozen CDC file is intact; it is not a newer claims year. No figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our data changelog, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of 2017.