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Did life expectancy for Black Americans decrease by nearly three years in the first half of 2020?

Tuesday, February 23, 2021
By Lisa Freedland
YES

Reflecting the impact of COVID-19, life expectancy for Black Americans decreased by nearly three years in the first half of 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The estimate dropped from 74.7 years to 72 years, a larger fall than for either whites and Hispanics.

In the same period, life expectancy of Hispanics decreased by about two years, from 81.8 years to 79.9 years. White life expectancy decreased by less than one year, from 78.8 to 78.

CDC data suggests that white people are less likely to die from COVID-19 infections than other races. Blacks are dying from the coronavirus at 1.9 times the rate of white people, while Hispanics are dying from the virus at 2.3 times the rate for whites. The COVID-19 pandemic was not the only factor reducing life expectancy in the first half of 2020. Deaths from drug overdoses were also on the rise.

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