Although the United States spends more on healthcare than any other country, its life expectancy is lower than other wealthy nations. However, scientists have revealed a simple policy change that could potentially increase the average lifespan of the U.S. population by over two years.
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In a report by Newsweek, the top 10 percent of households in the U.S. possess 71 percent of the nation’s wealth, while the bottom 50 percent hold less than 2 percent. Racial wealth disparities are also growing, with white households earning nearly six times more than Latino households and almost seven times more than Black households, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research and the Federal Reserve.
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital believe so. In a recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, the team examined 35,164 participants aged 50 and above. They discovered a significant disparity in longevity between individuals with low and high wealth. They found that this difference translated to a 13.5-year gap in survival. However, based on their calculations, a hypothetical scenario with perfectly equal wealth distribution would increase the median lifespan of the population by 2.2 years, effectively closing the mortality gap between the U.S. and other wealthy countries.
“Our findings are concordant with prior studies that showed that wealth is associated with better health, including reduced cardiovascular disease and asthma, and higher self-rated health,”
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Even a modest wealth redistribution proposal showed a notable improvement in median lifespan, with an increase of 1 year across the entire U.S. population. For this simulation, the researchers considered the concept of baby bonds, wherein every newborn in the country would receive a $1000 deposit in an interest-bearing account. Additional annual deposits of up to $2000 would be made based on the household’s income-to-poverty ratio.
‘Wealth may improve health via several mechanisms, including facilitating residence in neighborhoods with better-funded schools, more robust infrastructure, and greater access to healthy food; increasing workers’ agency to choose safe employment; enhancing access to medical, dental, long-term, and home health care;’