CNN: Drug overdoses, suicides cause drop in 2017 US life expectancy; CDC director calls it a ‘wakeup call’
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Due to increased deaths from drug overdoses and suicides, the CDC reports that life expectancy in the United States has declined from 2016 to 2017. The estimate of how long a person born in 2017 can expect to live in the U.S. is 78.6 years, a decrease of 0.1 year from 2016, as reported by government statisticians. Deaths from overdose reached a new high in 2017, topping 70,000, while the suicide rate increased by 3.7%. The 10 leading causes of death, however, have remained the same. Dr. Robert Redfield, CDC director, called the trend tragic and troubling.
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