The average life expectancy across the nation decreased by nearly two years in 2020, from 78.7 to 77, according to the CDC.
This drop coincided with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and reflects its human cost, which accumulated to approximately 375,000 deaths in 2020.
The COVID-19 virus was the third leading cost of death in the U.S. behind heart disease and cancer, the CDC's National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) reveals.
The biggest dip in life expectancy occurred in New York state, which was a major epicenter of the pandemic at its height. The state's cumulative positivity rate has reached over five-and-a-half million people, according to the New York State Department of Health's COVID-19 tracker.
Hawaiian natives live the longest with an average life span of 80.7 years. The shortest life expectancy was in Mississippi at 71.9 years.
Twelve other states saw declines of 2 years or more, including the southern border states of Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, as well as Louisiana, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Alabama, Kentucky, Michigan and South Carolina.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok
Related
Related
Related
