Chart of the Day

Chart: Disparities in Life Expectancy Across the U.S.

IHME
Eli Rosenberg 3,866 Views Jun 16, 2011

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) recently released a report finding that much of the United States is not keeping up with worldwide gains in life expectancy. Overall, "more than 80% of [U.S.] counties fell in standing against the average of the 10 nations with the best life expectancies in the world, known as the international frontier," the report says. But what's striking is how low life expectancies are in specific areas. As the report notes, "Five counties in Mississippi have the lowest life expectancies for women, all below 74.5 years, putting them behind nations such as Honduras, El Salvador, and Peru."

 

Take a look at the geographic breakdown for women above. The South, the Appalachian region and parts of the Midwest had significantly lower life expectancy rates, something the report emphasized goes beyond socioeconomic and geographic factors. "The extent of geographic inequality is substantially larger in the US than in the UK, Canada, or Japan," the report notes.

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