State mortality · CDC NCHS 2017
District of Columbia - Mortality Statistics
3,581 deaths in 2017 across 10 tracked causes, at a state average age-adjusted rate of 52.5 per 100,000.
Data updated 2017-12-31
- 3,581
- Deaths, 2017
- Heart disease
- Leading cause
- −5%
- vs national avg
- 52.5
- Avg age-adj /100K
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Thin death-count book
What this means: 3,581 tracked deaths in 2017 put District of Columbia in the lightest third of state volumes. Small absolute counts make year-to-year swings noisier; pair the rate with the multi-year chart below.
Thin-volume third (3,581 deaths in 2017). Rate comparisons matter more than raw counts; see /methodology#corpus-placement.
Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death (CDC NCHS / NVSS), 2017. Age-adjusted rates allow fair comparison across states.
FIPS 11 · CDC WONDER 2017
Mortality desk for District of Columbia
2017: 3,581 deaths across 10 tracked causes at 52.5/100K mean age-adjusted · corpus #31/51 · 5% below US avg. Nearest rate peer: New Hampshire (-0.2/100K).
District of Columbia in the thin-volume third
District of Columbia recorded 3,581 total deaths in 2017 across 10 CDC WONDER cause-of-death categories. The single largest contributor was Heart disease (1,284 deaths, 189.8 per 100,000 age-adjusted) -- nationally, that puts the state at #12 of 51 states for this cause, where a higher rank corresponds to a higher rate. Together, the top five causes made up 87.3% of all deaths recorded (3,126). Raw death volume sits in the lightest third; read rates alongside counts before comparing to large states.
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 District of Columbia
Leading Causes of Death, Top 5
The five leading causes account for 3,126 deaths (87.3% of all deaths) in District of Columbia.
All Causes of Death in District of Columbia (2017)
| # | Cause of death | Deaths | % of total | Age-adj /100K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Heart disease | 1,284 | 35.9% | 189.8 |
| 2 | Cancer | 1,031 | 28.8% | 152.8 |
| 3 | Unintentional injuries | 427 | 11.9% | 61.0 |
| 4 | Stroke | 246 | 6.9% | 35.9 |
| 5 | Diabetes | 138 | 3.9% | 20.1 |
| 6 | CLRD | 137 | 3.8% | 19.6 |
| 7 | Alzheimer's disease | 125 | 3.5% | 17.6 |
| 8 | Influenza and pneumonia | 79 | 2.2% | 11.4 |
| 9 | Kidney disease | 67 | 1.9% | 10.0 |
| 10 | Suicide | 47 | 1.3% | 6.6 |
District of Columbia's causes, plotted by count and by rate
10 causes of death in District of Columbia plotted by total deaths against the age-adjusted rate per 100,000. Death count and age-adjusted rate move together across District of Columbia'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 District of Columbia by deaths and age-adjusted rate: Heart disease, 1284 deaths, 189.8 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Cancer, 1031 deaths, 152.8 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Unintentional injuries, 427 deaths, 61 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Stroke, 246 deaths, 35.9 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Diabetes, 138 deaths, 20.1 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. CLRD, 137 deaths, 19.6 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Alzheimer's disease, 125 deaths, 17.6 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Influenza and pneumonia, 79 deaths, 11.4 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Kidney disease, 67 deaths, 10 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate. Suicide, 47 deaths, 6.6 per 100,000 age-adjusted rate.
Mortality Trends Over Time
Show the full 19-year data table (deaths, rate, year-over-year change)
| Year | Total Deaths | Avg Age-Adj Rate | Deaths YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 4,127 | 74.0 | - |
| 2000 | 4,236 | 75.1 | +2.6% |
| 2001 | 4,239 | 75.3 | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 4,056 | 72.2 | -4.3% |
| 2003 | 3,857 | 69.0 | -4.9% |
| 2004 | 3,844 | 68.8 | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 3,742 | 66.5 | -2.7% |
| 2006 | 3,790 | 67.9 | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 3,622 | 64.1 | -4.4% |
| 2008 | 3,540 | 62.2 | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 3,281 | 57.1 | -7.3% |
| 2010 | 3,366 | 57.3 | +2.6% |
| 2011 | 3,251 | 54.1 | -3.4% |
| 2012 | 3,350 | 55.0 | +3.0% |
| 2013 | 3,401 | 54.6 | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 3,420 | 53.9 | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 3,437 | 53.3 | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 3,646 | 55.6 | +6.1% |
| 2017 | 3,581 | 52.5 | -1.8% |
Nearby States & Comparisons
Compare mortality data with states bordering District of Columbia (2017).
States with similar CDC WONDER rates
Two non-border peer sets for District of Columbia in 2017. Volume is thin, so peers are nearest on rates rather than counts. Border neighbors stay above.
Similar mean leading-cause rate
Nearest jurisdictions by mean age-adjusted rate across leading causes (52.5/100K here), excluding bordering states.
Similar 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.