Figures show that alcohol-specific deaths were 9% higher in 2020 than the annual average in 2017-19.
But it warned there were "substantially reduced hospital admissions overall", with a 30% reduction in all admissions to general acute hospitals in Scotland between 2019/20 and 2020/21.
She said tackling alcohol consumption and harm, particularly among high-risk groups, should be a "critical objective" of any Covid-19 recovery plans.In response to the study, Alison Douglas, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, which works to prevent alcohol harm, said: "While it is positive that overall Scots drank less during the last two years, this needs to seen in the context of the devastating rise in deaths caused by alcohol during the same period.
Public Health Minister Maree Todd said: "Throughout the pandemic we allocated additional funding to extend outreach initiatives which identify people at risk, address their immediate health concerns, and get them the support they need. Alcoholic liver disease was the biggest cause of alcohol-related death , followed by mental and behavioural disorders due to alcohol use .
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