COVID-19 Has Curbed Life Expectancy in the U.S.

In 2020, life expectancy in the U.S. fell substantially more than it did in 16 other high-income countries.

With COVID-19 becoming the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2020, how has life expectancy been affected? Using age-specific national mortality data from 2010 through 2018, researchers calculated life expectancies in the U.S. as well as 16 additional high-income countries and analyzed the impact of the excess deaths due to COVID-19 in 2020.

Between 2018 and 2020, life expectancy in the U.S. at birth fell by 1.87 years (a relative decrease of 2.4%), an effect mainly attributable to COVID-19. This decrease was 8.5 times greater than in peer countries, where life expectancy dropped by 0.22 years. In the U.S., the decline was more pronounced in men than in women (2.16 years vs. 1.50 years) and was disproportionately larger among Black …

Reviewing Author

Thomas Glück, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsConsilium Infectiorum by InfectoPharm, Infection

Thomas Glück, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsConsilium Infectiorum by InfectoPharm, Infection

COVID-19 Has Curbed Life Expectancy in the U.S.

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Reviewing Author