Rémy Furrer, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow and Amanda Merner, PhD, an instructor and research scientist in the Brain Bioethics Lab in the Department of Neurosurgery at Massachusetts General Hospital are the lead authors of a paper published in Device, “Public perceptions of neurotechnologies used to target mood, memory, and motor symptoms.” Gabriel Lázaro-Muñoz, PhD, JD, associate professor in the Departments of Neurosurgery and Psychiatry at MGH, is senior author.

About The Study: Between 1980 and 2023, the total number of excess U.S. deaths reached an estimated 14.7 million. Although excess deaths per year peaked in 2021, there were still more than 1.5 million during 2022 to 2023. In 2023, excess death rates remained substantially higher than pre-pandemic rates. The rising trend from 1980 to 2019 appears to have continued during and after the pandemic, likely reflecting pre-pandemic causes of death, including drug overdose, firearm injury, and cardiometabolic disease. These deaths highlight the continued consequences of U.S. health system inadequacies, economic inequality, and social and political determinants of health.