Life expectancy: Covid-19 accentuates disparities between whites and blacks in the United States
A nurse administers a dose of vaccine to an African American in New York City on January 23, 2021. AP - Mary Altaffer
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2 min
Life expectancy in the United States is at its lowest since 2006, according to preliminary data covering the first six months of 2020. The numbers also show the importance of racial disparities in terms of health: life expectancy of African Americans fell much more than that of whites.
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With our correspondent in Washington,
Anne Corpet
As a result of the Covid-19 epidemic, life expectancy in the United States has been reduced by one year for the entire population.
This is the largest drop observed since World War II.
She's really plunged into African-Americans: at least two and a half years between 2019 and the first half of 2020.
The disparities in terms of lifespan between whites and blacks have been slowly narrowing for several years.
They have increased again because of the coronavirus, as African Americans now live an average of six years less than whites.
This gap had not been observed since 1998. The numbers reflect the huge impact the pandemic has had on African Americans.
They are more affected than whites and have a higher death rate.
Experts hope that immunizing Americans will reduce these disparities.
But they are already warning that African Americans will bear the brunt of the economic crisis, which has tangible health consequences, given the exorbitant cost of medical care in the United States.
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