Average American life expectancy fell from 77 to 76.4 years last year, bringing U.S. figures back to where they were in 1996, according to new federal data. For American men, life expectancy fell by more than eight months, and for women, the loss was about seven months, the study found. Life expectancy, which is a measure of death rates, dropped in every age category over age 1. Though the rate of decline in life expectancy wasn’t as dramatic as in 2020, the fall-off in 2021 was worse because it came on top of that year’s 17% decline. The latest decline came as other wealthy countries saw a rebound after the first year of the pandemic. The race gap reversed somewhat in 2021 as white people lost more ground than people of color, though they still live longer on average. Read more.
