Understanding the Improvement in Disability Free Life Expectancy In the U.S. Elderly Population

Michael Chernew, David M. Cutler, Kaushik Ghosh & Mary Beth Landrum
Working Paper 22306
DOI 10.3386/w22306
Issue Date

Understanding how healthy lifespans are changing is essential for public policy. This paper explores changes in healthy lifespan in the U.S. over time and considers reasons for the changes. We reach three fundamental conclusions. First, we show that healthy life increased measurably in the US between 1992 and 2008. Years of healthy life expectancy at age 65 increased by 1.8 years over that time period, while disabled life expectancy fell by 0.5 years. Second, we identify the medical conditions that contribute the most to changes in healthy life expectancy. The largest improvements in healthy life expectancy come from reduced incidence and improved functioning for those with cardiovascular disease and vision problems. Together, these conditions account for 63 percent of the improvement in disability-free life expectancy. Third and more speculatively, we explore the role of medical treatments in the improvements for these two conditions. We estimate that improved medical care is likely responsible for a significant part of the cardiovascular and vision-related extension of healthy life.

Non-Technical Summaries

Published Versions

Understanding the Improvement in Disability-Free Life Expectancy in the US Elderly Population, Michael Chernew, David M. Cutler, Kaushik Ghosh, Mary Beth Landrum. in Insights in the Economics of Aging, Wise. 2017

Related

Topics

Health, Education, and Welfare
Health
Poverty and Wellbeing

Programs

Economics of Aging
Economics of Health

Projects

Healthcare Decision-Making and Outcomes for People Living with Alzheimer's Disease

Conferences

Conference on the Economics of Aging, Spring 2015

Mentioned in the News

Blame Technology, Not Longer Life Spans, for Health Spending Increases
Source: The New York Times
Read the research here. Or a non-technical summary here.

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