[Looking back on the COVID-19 pandemic: what explains the excess mortality due to COVID-19 in The Netherlands?].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether previously identified deficiencies in government policy could have contributed to the high number of deaths from COVID-19 in the Netherlands.

DESIGN

Secondary analysis of data from 28 European countries extracted from harmonized international databases.

METHOD: Correlation and regression analysis of the relationship between contact-limiting measures and vaccination campaigns on the one hand and excess mortality due to COVID-19 on the other hand.

RESULTS

There were three periods of sharply increased mortality in Europe. In the first and third periods, mortality in the Netherlands was relatively high, but not in the second period. The higher mortality in the first period was related to the fact that the epidemic had already spread widely before strict contact-restriction measures were implemented. In the third period, the higher mortality was related to the slow start of the booster campaign.

CONCLUSION

The relatively high mortality in the Netherlands during the COVID-19 pandemic might have been partly avoidable.