Losing Our Parents

New 2021 Data Visualization Shows Parent Mortality: 44.2% Had Lost at Least One Parent

March 21, 2023

Written by:

George M. Hayward

More than a quarter of the U.S. population in 2021 (26.4%) had lost both parents.

Among those who had ever lost a parent, 50.7% had lost their mother and 69.2% their father by age 50, according to an analysis of recent estimates from the 2021 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP).

A new data visualization shows at what age we lose our mothers and fathers and how that pattern varies by race and ethnicity.

It shows that approximately 30.8% of people in the United States have lost their biological mother, 39.8% have lost their biological father, and 44.2% have lost at least one parent.

Parent mortality has become even more salient amid the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As of February 8, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported over 1.1 million deaths from COVID-19 in the United States.

There was a significant increase in the percentage of people who had both parents deceased (25.7% to 26.4%), their father deceased (39.3% to 39.8%), and their mother deceased (30.3% to 30.8%).

The lives lost to COVID-19 often mean the loss of a spouse, parent, child or caregiver. As of February 3, 2023, the Imperial College London estimates that over 222,500 children have lost one or both parents due to COVID-19 associated deaths in the United States alone.

Disparities in a wide variety of health outcomes, including mortality, have long been associated with race and ethnicity differences. Mortality rates from the COVID-19 pandemic also vary by race and ethnicity, with age-adjusted mortality rates higher for American Indian or Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander individuals relative to Asian or White individuals.

This visualization provides recent estimates of parent mortality and changes between 2019 and 2021. Importantly, these years reflect data prior to (2019) and during (2021) the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing for comparisons. It uses data from the public-use files of the SIPP, which asks respondents whether their parents are alive and, for those who have lost a parent, their age when their parent(s) passed away.

Key Highlights

Age:

As people age, they are more likely to have lost a parent. For example, data from 2021 show that 4.3% of children ages 0-17 have lost at least one parent, compared to 11.5% of 18- to 29-year-olds and 23.4% of 30- to 39-year-olds.
Overall, the percentage of people with a deceased father is greater than the percentage of people with a deceased mother. This difference is statistically significant at every age group tested (0-17, 18-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70+).

Race and Ethnicity:

Based on data from 2021, about 19.6% of Black 18- to 29-year-olds have lost at least one parent. This is significantly higher than White alone (10.1%); White alone, non-Hispanic (9.5%); Asian alone (9.5%); Hispanic (11.5%); and all other non-Hispanic (11.9%) 18- to 29-year-olds. The same pattern holds true for 30- to 39-year-olds.

Comparisons Between 2019 and 2021:

For the population as a whole, there was no statistically significant difference in the percentage of people who had at least one parent deceased in 2019 compared to 2021. However, there was a significant increase in the percentage of people who had both parents deceased (25.7% to 26.4%), their father deceased (39.3% to 39.8%), and their mother deceased (30.3% to 30.8%).
For the total population of Black alone and Hispanic individuals, the percentage with at least one parent deceased increased from 43.4% to 46.4% and 32.3% to 33.9%, respectively.
The percentage of people with a deceased father increased for the Black alone and Hispanic populations. The percentage of people with a deceased mother increased for the Black alone population.

At What Age Did People Lose Their Parents?

For those individuals who lost a parent, the SIPP asks how old they were when their parent passed away.

This information can be used to estimate the percentage of people who lost their parent in a given age range (e.g., 0-4, 5-9) and the percentage of people who lost their parent up to, and including, a given age. Some key findings from these data in 2021 include:

The most common age ranges in which people lost their mother were 50-54 (13.6%), 55-59 (13.0%), and 60-64 (11.7%). Additionally, 5.7% lost their mother by age 15, 17.2% lost them by age 30, and 50.7% lost them by age 50.
The most common age ranges in which people lost their father were 50-54 (11.5%), 45-49 (11.2%), and 40-44 (10.8%). Additionally, 10.3% lost their father by age 15, 29.0% lost them by age 30, and 69.2% lost them by age 50.

Losing Our Parents: Recent Statistics on Parent Mortality and Change During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

Note: Click on the image to go to the interactive data visualization.

About the SIPP

SIPP is a nationally representative, longitudinal survey administered by the Census Bureau that provides comprehensive information on the dynamics of income, employment, household composition, and government program participation.

SIPP is also a leading source of data on economic well-being, family dynamics, education, wealth, health insurance, child care, and food security. SIPP interviews individuals for several years and provides monthly data about changes in household and family composition and economic circumstances over time. More information is available on the SIPP webpage.

George M. Hayward is a survey statistician in the Census Bureau’s Fertility and Family Statistics Branch.