Drastic Times

An article in Live Science published this month (August 2009), claims that life expectancy in America is behind 30 other nations. The article goes on to say that US life expectancy gains may be pretty much over.

According to findings published in the online medical journal PLoS Medicine last year, life expectancy rates for a sizeable portion of the population leveled off and even reversed starting in the 1980s.

In a previous article published by Live Science, researchers claim the findings are troublesome, because life expectancy, along with infant mortality, is a major indicator of the health of a nation. A decline in life expectancy, as is seen during turmoil such as war and famine, is a sign that health and social systems are failing.

The worst hit regions are the Deep South, Appalachia and also the southern part of the Midwest reaching into Texas. The reasons, largely preventable with better diet and access to medical services, are diabetes, cancers and heart disease caused by smoking, high blood pressure and obesity.

Researchers warn that this failing trend could easily spread to the rest of the nation, meaning that for the first time in the history of this country, parents will have lived longer than their children.

As of the writing of the article, the United States, despite being the wealthiest country on earth, had a life expectancy behind that of Bosnia and Cuba. Although it has by far the highest level of health spending per capita in the world, the United States fails its poorest citizens, with about 36 million of them living below the poverty line. As a result, the U.S. healthcare system ranked 37th on a list of 191 systems compiled by the World Health Organization.

Nonetheless, millions of Americans, even the poor without access to medical care, fight any attempt by the government to change the health care system and better their lives.