The Washington Post says its county-by-county analysis of death records compiled by the federal government “shows a clear divide in the health of urban and rural Americans, with the gap widening most dramatically among whites. The statistics reveal two Americas diverging, neither as healthy as it should be but one much sicker than the other.” For rural white women, the death rate has risen 30 percent in the past quarter-century, says the Post. The death rate for rural white men also rose, but more modestly. Drug overdoses, heavy drinking and suicide are factors. “Other trends may be contributing to the die-off, including obesity,” says the Post.
From 1990-2014, the mortality rate for white women rose throughout the nation, “particularly around small cities and rural areas,” said the Post. The greatest increases, of more then 40 percent, were in the South, the lower Midwest and the central Plains.
The New York Times, writing about research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, said the difference in lifespan of wealthy and poor Americans widened from 2001-14. “Life expectancy for the poor is lowest in a large swath that cuts through the middle of the country, and it appears in pockets in the rest of the country, in places like Nevada,” said the Times. Wealthier people live longer in all parts of the country. Poor people have longer lives in some regions that others, which suggests “the right mix of steps to improve habits and public health could help people live longer, regardless of how much money they make.”