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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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| Why is life expectancy in England and Wales 'stalling'? | | Author(s) | Lucinda Hiam, Dominic Harrison, Martin McKee, Danny Dorling |
| Journal title | Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, February 2018 |
| Pages | pp 1-5 |
| Full text* | https://doi.org/10.1136/jech-2017-210401 |
| Annotation | Several independent analyses, by both epidemiologists and actuaries, have concluded that the previous rate of improvement of life expectancy in England and Wales has now slowed markedly, and may even be reversing at older ages. However, although these findings have led the pension industry to reduce estimates of future liabilities, they have failed to elicit any significant concern in the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). In this essay, the evidence on changing life expectancy is reviewed, noting that the problems are greatest among older women. It estimates the gap between what life expectancy is now and what it might have been, had previous trends continued. At age 85, the gap is 0.34 years for women and 0.23 for men. The authors argue that recent changes cannot be dismissed as a temporary aberration. While the causes of this phenomenon are contested, there is growing evidence to point to the austerity policies implemented in recent years as at least a partial explanation. The authors call for a fully independent enquiry to ascertain what is happening to life expectancy in England and Wales and what should be done about it. (OFFPRINT.) (NL/RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-180326701 A |
| Classmark | BG6: S7: 82: 9 * |
| *Online access to the full text may require a payment |
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information about this article, and many others, can be found on the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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