Americans' life expectancy dropped for the second year in a row, and experts are panicking
For the first time since the early 1960s, life expectancy in the United States has fallen for a second year in a row. "I'm not prone to dramatic statements, but I think we should be really alarmed," the chief of the morality statistics branch at the National Center for Health Statistics, Robert Anderson, told NPR.
Officials blame the rare U.S. life expectancy decline on opioid overdoses. The epidemic has reached such a state of crisis that STAT estimated earlier this year that the drugs could kill nearly 500,000 Americans in the next decade. In October, President Trump officially declared the crisis to be a national public health emergency and said the government would work on advertising campaigns and research into non-addictive pain management techniques to combat the soaring fatalities.
Americans' life expectancy dropped from 78.9 years to 78.7 years between 2014 and 2015, and from 78.7 years to 78.6 years between 2015 and 2016. "For any individual, that's not a whole lot," Anderson said. "But when you're talking about it in terms of a population, you're talking about a significant number of potential lives that aren't being lived." In 2016, an estimated 42,200 drug overdose deaths were attributed to opioids. In 2015, that number was 33,000.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The last time U.S. life expectancy dropped at all was in 1993, during the height of the AIDS epidemic. "Deaths from alcohol have been rising as well," Princeton University economist Anne Case added to NPR. "So we think of it all being signs that something is really wrong and whatever is it is that's really wrong is happening nationwide."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Indie film's 'very brief' use of AI sparks backlash and calls for boycotts
Talking Points Did the creators of a new horror movie make a deal with the artificial intelligence devil?
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Could Taylor Swift swing the election?
Today's Big Question The pop star has outsized influence — and that extends beyond the music industry
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold Published
-
Kevin Hart awarded Mark Twain Prize
Speed Read He is the 25th recipient of the prestigious comedy prize
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US bans final type of asbestos
Speed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Tianeptine: why lawmakers fear a new kind of opioid
The explainer The drug is sold over the counter. And is highly addictive.
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Seattle Children's Hospital sues Texas over 'sham' demand for transgender medical records
Speed Read Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton subpoenaed records of any Texan who received gender-affirming care at the Washington hospital
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Afghanistan has a growing female suicide problem
Speed Read The Taliban has steadily whittled away women's and girls' rights in Afghanistan over the past 2 years, prompting a surge in depression and suicide
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US life expectancy rose in 2022 but not to pre-pandemic levels
Speed Read Life expectancy is slowly crawling back up
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
How polysubstance abuse is worsening the American opioid crisis
The Explainer Studies are showing that more Americans are struggling with dependency on multiple substances.
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Vallance diaries: Boris Johnson 'bamboozled' by Covid science
Speed Read Then PM struggled to get his head around key terms and stats, chief scientific advisor claims
By The Week UK Published
-
An increasing number of dog owners are 'vaccine hesitant' about rabies
Speed Read A new survey points to canine vaccine hesitancy
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published