COVID-19 lowers life expectancy in U.S.: study

LONDON, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Deaths related to COVID-19 in the United States have lowered the country's life expectancy at birth by 3.08 years, according to a study published by the online journal Scientific Reports on Wednesday.

Noting that 1 million Americans have died of COVID-19 between February 2020 and May 2022, the study calculated the deaths' combined impact on the U.S. life expectancy reductions and economic welfare losses.

According to the study, economic welfare losses estimated in terms of national income growth supplemented by the value of lives lost was approximately 3.57 trillion U.S. dollars.

Because of longstanding socioeconomic inequities, the losses caused by COVID-19 have not been evenly distributed, the study said, stressing that the scale of life expectancy and welfare losses underscores the pressing need to invest in health in the United States.