Public Comment

The Decline In Life Expectancy: Death by Despair

Harry Brill
Friday December 21, 2018 - 10:01:00 PM

You have probably heard that the American population has experienced an unprecedented three year decline in life expectancy. It is not surprising when we take into account the health related shortcomings in our society, some of which are getting worse. Air pollution, contaminated drinking water, exposure to radiation, dangerous viruses, and accidents due to official neglect are among the many hazards that people confront. And the considerable poverty and racism in the U.S. certainly shortens the life span of many Americans. Also, the number of suicides and deaths due to drug overdoses have climbed appreciably. Moreover, among the 33 developed countries, the U.S. is the only nation that lacks national health insurance for all its citizens.  

So you can understand, then, why current life expectancy is longer in more than 40 other countries. In some of these nations, much longer- almost 10 years longer in Monaco and five years more in Japan! 

Also very important is the enormous impact of the labor market on life expectancy. In recent years due to the restructuring of work earning a living has become more precarious and insecure. Instead of traditionally hiring employees, a growing number of businesses have been outsourcing employment. As a result, many workers who are unable to find regular jobs are being forced to become freelancers. In other words, they completely depend on finding different gigs, that is short term, temporary job engagements. 

Freelancers currently make up 34 percent of the workforce. The prediction is that within two years they will constitute at least 43 percent. By 2027 freelancers are expected to make up a majority of the labor force. As a growing number of workers are being forced to freelance for a living, many economists are claiming that the nation is well on its way to becoming a gig economy. 

Among the most difficult problem that freelancers confront is the considerable stress. Since almost 80 percent of freelancers do not obtain enough gigs, they are working only part-time and most often at a low pay rate. Their work life is unpredictable and precarious. They do not know where and when the next gig will come from. And since there are gaps between gigs, meeting living costs is very difficult.  

Because they are, so to speak, independent contractors, businesses are not obligated to provide fringe benefits. So employers are under no obligation to offer these gig workers a pension plan. For health insurance, they are also on their own. The freelancers must pay the entire premium. If they or their family members cannot afford the cost, the main option when ill is a hospital emergency room. 

The stress is costing these freelancers many years of their lives. In a study of 1,000 workers, those who experienced stress persistently had a 50 percent higher death rate than those who did not. Moreover, the mortality rate for those who suffered moderate levels of stress was the same as those who experienced high levels of stress. 

Their situation is also exacerbated by the isolation that is endemic to being a freelancer. Loneliness is a serious problem for most of these workers. Researchers who examined 70 studies involving over 3 million people found that those who reported being lonely had a 26 percent higher death rate. 

However, many other workers, who haven't (yet) met the same fate, are also suffering. Another ominous development has been the recent tendency of employers to convert full-time job into two or three part time jobs. According to the Economic Policy Institute there are 6.4 million involuntary part time workers. The number of people who work part-time involuntarily has increased since 2007 by more than 44 percent. The pay rate is typically much lower than what full time jobs pay, and fringe benefits if any are inadequate. As a result, about 75 percent of the involuntary part-timers are either in poverty or are at best earning low incomes. 

Also, in many of these part-time jobs the schedules change frequently and on short notice. It is particularly a problem for mothers with young children. In addition, part-time workers are unable to plan after-work activities. So for somewhat different reasons than the freelancers, these involuntary part time workers also experience long term stress and its adverse consequences. 

Unquestionably, Americans should be able to live many years longer than they do now. Looking elsewhere, we are able to obtain a concrete sense of what is possible. As already mentioned, the citizens of the nation Monaco enjoy the longest life expectancy, which is almost 90 years. The catch is that about 30 percent of its residents are millionaires and billionaires. But that should not discourage us from expecting our political representatives to provide us with a healthy environment As the health specialist, Geoffrey Rose, observed, "There is no known biological reason why every population should not be as healthy as the best". 

To live a long life does not require that we each own a swimming pool. However, this nation can certainly afford to provide, as many countries already do, affordable national health insurance for all. Many other problems that the population is confronting will still need to be favorably resolved. But the guarantee of affordable and high quality health care would be an important step to putting this nation on the road to sanity.