In the last year, Louisiana lost 14,000 residents, the result of some Pelican State residents seeking better jobs and economic fortunes elsewhere. However, one demographer says there's another major reason why Louisiana was only one of eight states to see its population fall in 2023.
"We also have a high number of deaths," Allison Plyer, the chief demographer at the Data Center in New Orleans, told WWL's Tommy Tucker.
According to Plyer, over the last three years, Louisiana has had one of the highest death rates in the United States. In fact, she says the death rate plays a larger role in the Louisiana's population drop than does the brain drain of young people leaving for neighboring states.
"People don't think of death as a way we lose population, but it very much is," Plyer said. "We have some of the highest death rates across the board. Whether it's drug overdose rate, gun suicides, maternal mortality, or infant mortality, Louisiana has some of the highest death rates. I think we don't realize that a big piece of population loss really is because of our high death rates, which really has nothing to do with young people."
Plyer says another statistic provides a double whammy when it comes to the state's population loss.
"In Louisiana, we have a larger number of deaths than births," Plyer noted.
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