Reports of recent declines in U.S. life expectancy have sparked widespread concern, yet the underlying statistics are often misunderstood or misinterpreted. Life expectancy is a composite measure shaped by mortality patterns across the lifespan, sensitive to short-term shocks such as pandemics and overdose rates, as well as longstanding conditions including access to health care, economic insecurity, and systemic inequities. This event will explore how life expectancy is calculated in the United States, look at what the numbers do – and do not – tell us about population health, and describe how U.S. methods and outcomes compare with those of peer nations.
Bringing together experts in demography, epidemiology, health equity, and public policy, the discussion will examine the causes of recent declines, including COVID-19, substance use, chronic disease, violence, and social determinants of health. Speakers will explore the variety of ways in which life expectancy statistics can be interpreted for policy making and public communication – not all of which are evidence-based. The event will equip policymakers, journalists, and health leaders with a clearer understanding of the data and how it might inform policy and health interventions.
Agenda
Additional speakers to be announced
3:00 pm | Welcome
3:05 | Discussion
- Thomas LaVeist (Moderator), Dean and Weatherhead Presidential Chair in Health Equity, Tulane University
- Jennifer Beam Dowd, Professor of Demography and Population Health, University of Oxford
- Ali Mokdad, Professor of Health Metrics Sciences, Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, and Chief Strategy Officer of Population Health, University of Washington
- Jennifer Karas Montez, University Professor, Syracuse University
3:50 | Audience Q&A
4:25 | Closing Remarks
4:30 | Adjourn
This event is part of the NAM’s Health in the Headlines series.
