Tag: mortality rate

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), encompassing heart disease and stroke, has been a major cause of death globally for a long time. It has affected individuals and their families and had far-reaching consequences for industries that provide financial security, such as life insurance.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020, or nearly one in six deaths.

The most recent estimates by the Master of the High Court are that as many as 70% of South Africans do not have a legally executable will. What this means is that for many South Africans, the death of a family member or loved one is surrounded by confusion, disarray and conflict.

Right now, over 4.14 million people around the world have succumbed to COVID-19 - and over 84,000 of those deaths happened right here in South Africa. As we navigate a third COVID-19 wave, South Africans are starting to come to terms with their own mortality.

Legally we have entered unchartered waters that government, perhaps understandably, appears unable to navigate. Practically, the coronavirus regulations cannot be adhered to in a society composed like South Africa’s. In whichever way one approaches the issue, the coronavirus regulations should in large part be set aside and replaced by less restrictive measures to control the pandemic.

After the likely spike in insurance claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, insurers are likely to introduce new or change  existing exclusionary clauses which were not previously considered to be necessary. The rapid spread and potential damage of the coronavirus presents an extraordinary situation for governments, businesses and individuals.

Where did all the toilet paper go? Snapshots of empty store shelves, low levels of storable staples like rice and noodles and city-states raising emergency levels has served to escalate panic buying and even shop-raiding in some parts of the world.