Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies Eötvös Loránd Research Network
Abstract
Using data for 201 regions (NUTS 2) in Europe, we examine the mortality burden of the
COVID-19 pandemic and how the mortality inequalities between regions changed between
2020 and 2022. We show that over the three years of the pandemic, not only did the level of
excess mortality rate change considerably, but also its geographical distribution. Focusing on
life expectancy as a summary measure of mortality conditions, we find that the variance of
regional life expectancy increased sharply in 2021. This was due to a much higher-than-average
excess mortality in regions with lower pre-pandemic life expectancy. While the life expectancy
inequality has returned to its pre-pandemic level in 2022, the observed life expectancy in
almost all regions is far below that expected without the pandemic