Date and Time
March 19, 2008
1:30 PM - 3:00 PM

Availability
Open to the public
No RSVP required

This study uses period life tables to explore differences in life expectancy within and between populations over time and in cross-section.

We focus on the U.S. as a whole, on black-white and male-female differences within the U.S. and on comparison of the U.S. with other high income countries. We measure life expectancy inequality within a population by the inter-quartile range (or ratio) of the survivorship-age distribution. Some results that invite discussion include:

• Within the U.S. very little decline in inequality since 1960.
• Very little decline in the black-white gap in life expectancy since 1950. Within the black population, there has been some decline in inequality in recent decades, but it is still greater than in the white population.
• The male-female gap in life expectancy increased until the mid-1970s and has decreased since then. Inequality in life expectancy for both whites and blacks is greater for males than for females.
• Inequality in life expectancy is greater in the U.S. than in other high income countries even if the comparison is limited to U.S. whites.