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U.S. life expectancy fell by 1 whole year in first 6 months of pandemic

18 February 2021
 Dan Ackermann

Life expectancy in the U.S. fell by a full year in the half of 2020, CDC data published Thursday shows.

Why it matters: The decline from 78.8 years in 2019 to 77.8 years for January through June 2020 marks the biggest fall in longevity since World War II, underscoring the impact of COVID-19 on the U.S.

By the numbers: Over 490,000 people have died from the coronavirus in the U.S. since the pandemic began, according to Johns Hopkins data.

  • The CDC figures show that in the first six months of 2020, life expectancy for non-Hispanic Black people fell by 2.7 years, from 74.7 to 72.
  • For Hispanic people there was a fall of 1.9 years, from 81.8 to 79.9, while for non-Hispanic white people there was a drop of 0.8 years, from 78.8 to 78.

Of note: The period the CDC measured came as deaths from COVID-19 began to surge.

  • Health scientist Elizabeth Arias, a co-author of the CDC report, told the Wall Street Journal it's "very concerning when we see mortality increase to such a degree."
  • "It gives you a clear picture of the magnitude of the effect of the COVID pandemic," she added.

Go deeper: How the winter surge changed COVID disparities

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.