View Our March 7, 2022 Data Brief on 2020 Arizona Life Expectancy:
In December 2021, CDC announced that life expectancy in the US had declined by about 2 years in 2020 compared to 2019, the largest single year decrease in more than 75 years and reflects the excess deaths in 2020 directly or indirectly related to the Covid pandemic.
Our new AzPHA Data Brief entitled Declines in Life Expectancy in Arizona: 2020 vs. 2019, explores how Arizona compares with the U.S. overall with respect to the decrease in life expectancy in 2020 vs. 2019. We chose this topic because of our previous reports that found that Arizona:
- has had the largest percent increase in all-cause mortality throughout the pandemic;
- is the only state in which COVID-19 has been the leading cause of death during the pandemic, and
- has the 2nd highest COVID-19 mortality rate in the U.S. averaged over the pandemic.
Not surprisingly, our analysis finds that life expectancy in Arizona decreased by substantially more than the US average during 2020; 2.8 years in Arizona vs 2.1 years nationally.
The decrease in life expectancy was not uniform across demographics, with American Indians experiencing a decrease in life expectancy of about eight years.
Editorial Note: The reasons why Arizona’s 2020 life expectancy declined by substantially more than in the US overall are multifactorial, but the dominant reasons are the decisions made by Governor Ducey and former ADHS Director Christ during 2020 (particularly the lack of implementation and enforcement of mitigation measures like an enforced statewide face covering mandate and enforced mitigation in closed indoor environments like bars, restaurants and nightclubs).
For more on this topic be sure to read this article in the Arizona Republic by Stephanie Innes entitled: Why Is Arizona’s COVID-19 Death Rate So High?
