Large disparities in life expectancy observed, which grew over time, especially during the first two years of COVID-19
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, Nov. 22, 2024 (HealthDay News) — There are considerable differences in life expectancy between different groups within the U.S. population, according to a study published online Nov. 21 in The Lancet.
Laura Dwyer-Lindgren, Ph.D., from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle, and colleagues partitioned the U.S. population into 10 groups (eight from a previous study plus two additional groups comprising the U.S. Latino population) and examined trends in life expectancy from 2000 to 2021 for these groups.
Throughout the study period, the researchers observed large disparities in life expectancy between the “10 Americas,” which grew more substantial over time, especially during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. The gap between Americas with the lowest and highest life expectancies was 12.6 years in 2000 and increased to 13.9 years in 2010, 15.8 years in 2019, 18.9 years in 2020, and 20.4 years in 2021. The trends in life expectancy over time varied by group, leading to changes in the ordering of the groups during the time period. The only group to experience substantial declines in life expectancy from 2000 to 2019 was America 10 (American Indian and Alaska Native individuals in the West), which experienced the largest declines from 2019 to 2021. Americas 6, 7, and 9 (the three Black Americas) had relatively large increases in life expectancy before 2020, and all three had higher life expectancy than America 10 by 2006.
“In a country with the wealth and resources of the USA, it is intolerable that so many are living in conditions and with health outcomes akin to those of an entirely different country,” the authors write.
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