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State Variation in Black and White Life Expectancy and Evolving Disparities

Excerpt:  “Life expectancy increased between 1990 and 2018 for each race/sex category (e.g., Black men, Black women, white men, white women), and overall, the gap between Black and white life expectancy decreased. The narrowing of the racial gap can be attributed to accelerated gains in life expectancy for Black people relative to white people during this period. Despite the gains, the long-standing Black-white racial gap in life expectancy persists. Nationally, in the three years before the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a difference in life expectancy of 5.2 years for men (69.7 years for Black men versus 74.9 years for white men) and 3.1 years for women (76.8 years for Black women versus 79.9 years for white women). The gap between Black and white life expectancy was evident in every state. However, there was a substantial range across states within each race/sex category. For example, there was up to 16.5 years difference in white male life expectancy between the District of Columbia and West Virginia (86.2 years and 69.7 years, respectively). The extent of improvement over time varied substantially as well.”