Chicago’s average life expectancy bounced back to 78.7 years in 2023, nearly hitting its prepandemic peak — though large gaps remain between races and neighborhoods, according to the city health department. [Chicago Tribune]
City health officials attributed the overall improvement to a drop in COVID-19 deaths, after leaving the worst years of the pandemic behind, as well as fewer people dying early from chronic diseases.
(Photo credit: Alyssa Pointer/Chicago Tribune)
The highest average life expectancy ever recorded in Chicago was 78.8 years in 2019, according to the health department. In 2020, that number plummeted to 75.2 as Chicago and the nation grappled with the devastation of COVID-19.
“Nearly eliminating COVID-19 deaths, once the largest driver of the racial life expectancy gap, has been key,” said Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Olusimbo “Simbo” Ige, in a news release. Ige also cited a reduction in deaths from heart disease, diabetes, cancer and homicide, especially among Black Chicagoans.
The new data comes after the city health department announced a plan late last year aimed at addressing life expectancy gaps in Chicago.
Large disparities have long existed between the life expectancies of Black Chicagoans and other city residents — gaps that city health officials have attributed to long-term disinvestment in predominantly Black neighborhoods and systemic racism. Factors such as access to health care, education, nutritious food, neighborhood safety, environmental conditions, employment, physical activity and stable housing can contribute to life expectancy.
The situation improved slightly in 2023, with the gap between Black and white Chicagoans narrowing from 11.4 years to 10.6 years.
In 2023, Black Chicagoans had an average life expectancy of 71.8 years; white Chicagoans had an average life expectancy of 81.3 years; Latino Chicagoans had an average life expectancy of 82.7 years; and Asian and Pacific Islander Chicagoans had an average life expectancy of 86.8 years.
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