Things have to Change

BBC: Americans live shorter lives than citizens of almost every other developed nation, according to a report from several US charities.


Americans live shorter lives than citizens of almost every other developed nation, according to a report from several US charities.

The report found that the US ranked 42nd in the world for life expectancy despite spending more on health care per person than any other country.

Overall, the American Human Development Report ranked the world's richest country 12th for human development.

The study looked at US government data on health, education and income.

The report was funded by Oxfam America, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Conrad Hilton Foundation.

Among other findings:

Of the world's richest nations, the US has the most children (15% or one out of eight) living in poverty
Of the OECD nations, the US has the most people in prison - as a percentage and in absolute numbers

25% of 15-year-old students performed at or below the lowest level in an international maths test - worse than Canada, France, Germany and Japan

If the US infant mortality rate were equal to first-ranked Sweden, more than 20,000 babies would survive beyond their first year of life.

The BBC article tells us:

Asian males in the US were found to have the highest human development index score and were expected to live 14 years longer than African-American males, who had the lowest human development index rating.

More US babies die in their first year than in most other rich countries

The 20th district, around Fresno, California, was ranked last - with people earning one-third as much as residents of the top-ranked US district,- in Manhattan, New York.

The US north-east has the highest overall ranking because people there earn more, are more highly-educated and have the second highest life expectancy.

West Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas and Alabama are four of the five bottom states on the index. Mississippi is ranked lowest.