The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the U.S. life expectancy to dive by 1 whole year. The new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (a part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) collected data from the first half of 2020. Greater disparities can be noted according to different racial groups.
Reasons for Life Expectancy Drop
For the first 6 months of the year 2020, the American life expectancy rate from birth went from 78.8 years to 77.8 years. The CDC reported that COVID-19 deaths were the primary element for the drop in life expectancy. A secondary cause was the increase of drug overdose deaths.
Jeff Lancashire, a spokesperson for the NCHS, explained that pre-COVID life expectancy rates also dropped a bit due to an influx of drug overdose deaths. However, this time, COVID-19 is accountable for about two-thirds of the excess deaths in 2020, which is the factor that drives down the rate.
Rate Differences Between Race & Gender
A large difference of 6 years was noted between Black and White life expectancy rates, with non-Hispanic Black males seeing the sharpest decline. The non-Hispanic Black male life expectancy rate declined by 3 years.
The life expectancy gap between women and men also widened to 5.4 years from 5.1 years in 2019.
As the report only accounts for January to June of 2020, experts fear that the final count for the year will see a sharper decline.
Full Rate for 2020
"I think - and fear - that the final estimate for the decline in life expectancy in 2020 will be non-trivially higher," stated Noreen Goldman, a demographer from Princeton University.
Goldman shares that the life expectancy rate will continue to be effected by COVID-19 for long term. Not only will it have negative health impacts but also due to the disease, but the social and economic consequences will also contribute negatively to health.
Nearly 490,000 people in the U.S. have died from COVID-19. University of Washington's Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation predicts that number will reach over 600,000 deaths by June 2021.
