Life expectancy in the US, which dipped dramatically in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, declined once again in 2021 despite the introduction of vaccines, analysis has shown.
The study, which has not yet been peer reviewed, predicts the average American will live to 76.60 years old versus 76.99 years in 2020. Since the onset of the pandemic in 2019, life expectancy has dropped by 2.26 years.
It is the largest decline since the Second World War, researchers noted.
Researchers hypothesised that slow distribution and scepticism negated the positive effects of the vaccines.
“Although the introduction and availability of effective vaccines were expected to curb US mortality rates in 2021, slow vaccine uptake and the spread of the Delta variant produced large surges in mortality,” the study found.
The decline in life expectancy was “heavily racialised”, researchers added.
In 2020, Hispanics and black Americans saw the sharpest decline in life expectancy. There was a reversal last year, however, as Hispanics and black Americans saw increases while white Americans experienced a further decline.
Despite the increase last year, Hispanic and black populations have faced disproportionately large life expectancy decreases.
“Over the two-year period between 2019 and 2021, US Hispanic and non-Hispanic black populations experienced the largest losses in life expectancy, reflecting the legacy of systemic racism and inadequacies in the US handling of the pandemic,” researchers said.
Hispanic and black populations faced a decline in life expectancy of 3.65 and 2.80 years, respectively, since 2019, compared to 1.72 years for white populations.
The study, which analysed provisional death counts, noted that 19 “peer countries” — nations with a similar socio-economic standing — experienced a decline of life expectancy of about 0.57 years in 2020 and an increase of 0.28 in 2021.
“The US mortality experience during 2020 and 2021 was more severe than in peer countries, deepening a US disadvantage in health and survival that has been building for decades,” researchers said.
The gap between American life expectancy and peer countries rose to more than five years in 2021.
The study, conducted by researchers at the Urban Institute at Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Colorado, Boulder, was published online on Thursday on the MedRxiv preprint server.
The server, owned by the Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory, is a platform for researchers to share and receive feedback on their work before publication.
Tips for entertaining with ease
· Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.
· As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.
· Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.
· Have some background music on to help create a bit of ambience and fill any initial lulls in conversations.
· The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.
· You absolutely don’t have to make every element of the brunch from scratch. Take inspiration from our ideas for ready-made extras and by all means pick up a store-bought dessert.
Key developments in maritime dispute
2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier.
2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus
2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.
2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.
2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dhadak 2
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Rating: 1/5
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