Pandemic lowers life expectancy in the US 0:54
(CNN) -
Life expectancy in the United States fell by a year and a half in 2020 mainly due to the increase in deaths from the covid-19 pandemic, according to the first data published by the Centers for Control and Prevention Disease Report (CDC). "Life expectancy at birth in the United States for 2020, based on near-definitive data, was 77.3 years, the lowest since 2003," wrote the Researchers from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics in a new report released Wednesday.
The covid-19 pandemic "is turning into a pandemic of the unvaccinated," says CDC director
Life expectancy in the United States fell from 78.8 years in 2019 to 77.3 years in 2020, the researchers reported, and deaths from Covid-19 contributed 73.8% of that decline.
The report was based on provisional data from the 2020 birth and death records, processed by the National Center for Health Statistics.
Since the study was based on registered deaths and births, some deaths or births that had not yet been counted or registered were not included in the first data.
The researchers found that the life expectancy of men fell from 76.3 years in 2019 to 74.5 in 2020 and the life expectancy of women fell from 81.4 years in 2019 to 80.2 in 2020.
There were also some racial disparities that emerged in the data.
The researchers found that Hispanics experienced the largest decrease in life expectancy between 2019 and 2020, primarily due to COVID-19, decreasing in three years from 81.8 years to 78.8 years.
Life expectancy fell by 2.9 years for blacks, from 74.7 years to 71.8 years, and decreased by 1.2 years for whites, from 78.8 years to 77.6 years.
advertising
"Mortality due to covid-19 had by far the greatest effect on the decrease in life expectancy at birth between 2019 and 2020, in general, among men and women, and for the three groups of race and Hispanic origin shown in this report, "the researchers wrote.
The Covid-19 Pandemic Has Significantly Affected Hispanic Adults, Research Finds
The 1.5-year decline in life expectancy between 2019 and 2020 was primarily due to increases in deaths linked to COVID-19, unintentional injuries, homicide, diabetes, and chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, the researchers reported.
The overall decline in life expectancy last year would have been even greater were it not for the "offsetting effect" of declines in cancer deaths, the researchers found, as well as declines in deaths linked to chronic respiratory diseases. lower levels, heart disease, suicide, and certain perinatal conditions.
Earlier this year, the CDC released interim data showing that Covid-19 was the third leading cause of death in the United States last year.
The death rate from 2019 to 2020 increased by 15.9%, from 715.2 to 828.7 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the report.
US exceeds 600,000 deaths from covid-19
The first data showed that the top 10 causes of death in 2020 were:
Heart disease
Cancer
Covid-19
Unintentional injuries
Stroke
Chronic lower respiratory disease
Alzheimer disease
Diabetes
Influenza and pneumonia
Renal disease
Life expectancy in the United States