The current year is expected to surpass 2020 to become the deadliest year in the nation’s history, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The 3.3 million deaths last year is likely to be passed by the end of the current calendar year once data is completed, marking a new record that has lowered the average life span in the U.S. after two years of the coronavirus.
Driven by overdoses and suicides, US life expectancy is the lowest its been since WW2 https://t.co/hGuh5dgORV
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) December 22, 2021
The new average life expectancy in the U.S. is now at 77 years, a nearly two-year drop from the pre-2020 average.
In addition to the pandemic, deaths due to drug overdoses will rank over 100,000 for the first time, according to the Associated Press.
From May 2020 through April 2021, the estimated number of drug overdose deaths exceeded 100,000 in a 12-month period for the first time.
64% of the deaths involved synthetic opioids—chiefly fentanyl. https://t.co/zOjDqJeKjW
— Global Health NOW (@ghn_news) December 17, 2021
The pandemic has had a strong impact on mental health as well as physical health, contributing to increased problems with drugs and suicide.
The nation will need to address more than just the coronavirus to help those struggling with the leading causes of death in order to improve the situation in the coming year.
