Life Expectancy Trend by Sex in Monroe County

The gap in life expectancy between females and males in Monroe County has increased since 2013. Male life expectancy in the county peaked that year at 78.6 years and was only 4 years lower than females. In 2021, life expectancy for males dropped to 75.2 years and is now 5 years less than females in the region. Drug overdoses are the major driver in the discrepancy, with males in the region having a years of potential life lost (YPLL) rate from overdoses that is almost three times as high as females in 2019-2021.

Methodology note: Years of potential life lost (YPLL) is a widely used measure to assess the rate of premature mortality. YPLL places a larger weight on the deaths of younger people, in contrast with overall mortality statistics which are dominated by deaths of the elderly. The YPLL rates in Common Ground Health analyses are derived using 75 years as the baseline. A death at age 65 has YPLL of 10, where as a death at age 35 has a YPLL of 40. The rates are calculated per 100,000 population and are age-sex adjusted to account for differences in population distribution.