The impact of increased life expectancy

¶ … Life Expectancy

Looking at the current data on the life expectancy in the United States, it is indeed correct to assume that most people would live to the ages of 100 or more. This assumption is made possible by advances in the field of medical science, according to biologists. This claim is strengthened by the data on life expectancy by birth year in the country, which showed that towards the year 2000, there has been a steady increase in life expectancy, reaching towards the 80 years level. In addition to this, U.S. death rate by age data illustrated that death is practically nil for people with ages below 40 years old, after which death could increase exponentially but will peak at 80 years or older. Lastly, U.S. life expectancy by age supports these assumptions by showing that indeed, 80 years old marks the highest life expectancy for people in the 21st century.

While this finding is beneficial to the population in that death rates decreases and this may very slowly progress over time, there are also consequences that could society must confront. With increased life expectancy, it is possible that U.S. will eventually become an 'old' population, similar to the case of Japan, wherein the elderly exceeds the youth population. This means that economically, the country would adjust its social welfare policies in favor of the majority, which are the elderly people. Government spending could increase to address the needs of the elderly sector, as this group ceases to become productive individuals, what with the increasing elderly sector and relatively lower population of the youth and adult population, which are considered the productive sectors of the society. These adjustments in social welfare policies and economic make-up are not accomplished overnight, and the government must anticipate the coming of an aging population in years to come, given these findings from the population characteristics of today's American society.