This report presents preliminary US data on deaths, death rates, life expectancy, leading causes of death, and infant mortality for the year 2006 by selected characteristics such as age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin. Data in this report are based on a large number of deaths comprising approximately 99 percent of the demographic file and 96 percent of the medical file for all deaths in the United States in 2006. The records are weighted to independent control counts for 2006. For certain causes of death such as unintentional injuries, homicides, suicides, and sudden infant death syndrome, preliminary and final data may differ because of the truncated nature of the preliminary file. Comparisons are made with 2005 final data. The age-adjusted death rate for the United States decreased from 798.8 deaths per 100,000 population in 2005 to 776.4 deaths per 100,000 population in 2006. Age-adjusted death rates decreased significantly between 2005 and 2006 for 11 of the 15 leading causes of death: Diseases of heart, Malignant neoplasms, Cerebrovas cular diseases, Chronic lower respiratory diseases, Accidents (unin tentional injuries), Diabetes mellitus, Influenza and pneumonia, Septicemia, Intentional self-harm (suicide), Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, and Essential hypertension and hypertensive renal disease. Age-adjusted death rates for Alzheimer’s disease, Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis, Parkinson’s disease, and Assault (homicide) did not change significantly between 2005 and 2006. Life expectancy at birth rose by 0.3 years to a record high of 78.1 years.