We are in a crisis never before faced by a rich, industrialized democracy.

[Uncle Joe]

Link to tweet

(snip)

Those are some of the conclusions from a comprehensive new study by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University showing that mortality rates for U.S. adults ages 25-64 continue to increase, driving down the general population’s life expectancy for at least three consecutive years.

The report, “Life Expectancy and Mortality Rates in the United States, 1959-2017,’’ was published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The study paints a bleak picture of a workforce plagued by drug overdoses, suicides and organ-system diseases while grappling with economic stresses.

(snip)

In a trend that cuts across racial and ethnic boundaries, the U.S. has the worst midlife mortality rate among 17 high-income countries despite leading the world in per-capita spending on health care.

And while life expectancy in those other industrialized nations continues to inch up, it has been going in the opposite direction in America, decreasing from a peak of 78.9 years in 2014 to 78.6 in 2017, the last year covered by the report.

(snip)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/11/26/us-life-expectancy-downward-spiral-study/4303700002/

Well this is a sobering read.

[ck4829]

1. But the Dow is at an all time high though... this makes no sense!

Strong economy! Strong economy! Strong economy! If I say it enough times, maybe the news of these mortality rates will just go away.

[virgogal]

3. Drugs are the most common cause, not the economy.

[ck4829]

4. Trying to call out our political culture here

And why are people using drugs?

[Sherman A1]

2. And it is only going to get worse as AI ramps up disrupting the workplace for so very many

This is why I support Andrew Yang and his proposed policies including Universal Basic Income.

[redqueen]

6. Yep. This is something he's been talking about consistently.

Good to see the media reporting on it.

[MarcA]

9. This is a devastating truth that Andrew Yang has brought

to the Democratic campaign. How it is to be addressed is debatable.
That it exist is not.

[Blue_true]

10. Yes, you are right.

Technology is what has hollowed out rural America and what will continue to gut more American workers. It is going to take both UBI and profitable businesspeople rethinking their most appropriate roll in society to bring things into some semblance of balance.

But beyond UBI and equitable taxation, the larger problem of there simply not being enough jobs for even the best educated is going to apply itself more forcefully moving forward, I don't see a real solution to that problem. Having fewer children like many Americans are now doing won't resolve it, nor will taxing the rich more. We are basically in a paradox that humankind has never faced in it's history.

[George II]

5. "Crisis"? SMH.

[BuffaloJackalope]

7. What is the main difference? Those other industrialized nations have universal health care.

Corporations are literally killing us.

[DallasNE]

8. Deregulation

Has opened the floodgates for abuse by the drug companies for things like opioid related deaths.