U.S. life expectancy remains alarmingly stagnant

Latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Report According to the U.S. Mortality Study, life expectancy at birth increased from 77.5 years in 2022 to 78.4 years in 2023. This represents a continued recovery from the significant decline in 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, but the number is still not rising. below the 2010 level. And preliminary data suggests that improvements in life expectancy in 2024 will be much smaller as the recovery appears to be losing momentum.

Over the next 25 years, life expectancy in the United States will be projected It is expected to rise by about two years, although much less than in other wealthy developed countries, according to a study published in . of lancet Conducted by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Specifically, life expectancy in the United States is projected to increase from 2023 levels to 80.4 years in 2050. This small increase would cause the United States to drop from 49th to 66th place in the world's life expectancy rankings.

Life expectancy is an estimate of the average number of years a baby born in a given year is expected to live, taking into account mortality rates for that year. This is considered a basic measure of the health status of people.

newly released report The paper, published by the Bloomberg American Health Initiative, highlights the wide disparity between life expectancy in the United States and that of other countries, including relatively high incidence and prevalence of cardiovascular disease, obesity, and diabetes, and high levels of drug overdose. This highlights some of the reasons why this is likely to continue. , gun violence, motor vehicle fatalities, infant and maternal deaths. These help explain, for example, the 2.7 year difference in life expectancy between the US and UK.

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Other wealthy countries such as Japan, South Korea, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and Italy now have average life expectancies of 80 years or more. And, as the chart below shows, the gap between the United States and its peers has widened significantly since 1980.

Additionally, life expectancy in the U.S. is lagging behind. lags far behind comparable wealthy countries in spite of spend quite a lot About healthcare. In fact, the United States spends much more on health care in absolute terms and per capita than any other country. Any other countries. However, its mortality and morbidity outcomes are relatively mediocre.

What also stands out is the gross inequalities that exist across America when it comes to inequality. The image below shows the difference in sharp relief.

Focus on women and researchers project The average life expectancy of women in West Virginia in 2050 is below This is the same level as in 1990, and there will be little change in Arkansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah. Other states are estimated to be better off to varying degrees, but persistent inequality remains a major challenge.

Public health in the United States faces major challenges, not least of which are budget cuts at the federal and state levels. And the problem is not just related to what the health system can directly provide. There are problems with people's diet, general lack of exercise, and “diseases of despair” such as suicide, alcoholism, and illicit drug use, which account for proportionately large socio-economic factors.

Whether Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the controversial nominee for Secretary of Health and Human Services, can do it. make Americans healthy again I don't know yet. Kennedy's ideas to improve nutrition have support from the public health community, but could conflict with vested interests in the food industry. Additionally, other initiatives that Kennedy may undertake May weaken key pillars Declining public health in the United States makes it difficult to achieve the goal of closing the gap in life expectancy between the United States and other countries.