US life expectancy in 2020 saw biggest drop since WWII

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. life expectancy fell by a year and a half in 2020, the largest one-year decline since World War II. The decrease for both Black Americans and Hispanic Americans was even worse: three years.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the calculations for 2020 early Wednesday.

The drop is due mainly to the COVID-19 pandemic, which health officials say is responsible for close to 74% of the overall life expectancy decline.

But killers other than COVID-19 played a role.

Drug overdoses pushed life expectancy down, and rising homicides were a small but significant reason for the decline for Black Americans.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.