Survival differences among native-born and foreign-born older adults in the United States.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Studies show that the U.S. foreign-born population has lower mortality
than the native-born population before age 65. Until recently, the lack of data prohibited
reliable comparisons of U.S. mortality by nativity at older ages. This study provides
reliable estimates of U.S. foreign-born and native-born mortality at ages 65 and older
at the end of the 20(th) century. Life expectancies of the U.S. foreign born are compared
to other developed nations and the foreign-born contribution to total life expectancy
(TLE) in the United States is assessed. METHODS: Newly available data from Medicare
Part B records linked with Social Security Administration files are used to estimate
period life tables for nearly all U.S. adults aged 65 and older in 1995. Age-specific
survival differences and life expectancies are examined in 1995 by sex, race, and
place of birth. RESULTS: Foreign-born men and women had lower mortality at almost
every age from 65 to 100 compared to native-born men and women. Survival differences
by nativity were substantially greater for blacks than whites. Foreign-born blacks
had the longest life expectancy of all population groups (18.73 [95% confidence interval
{CI}, 18.15-19.30] years at age 65 for men and 22.76 [95% CI, 22.28-23.23] years at
age 65 for women). The foreign-born population increased TLE in the United States
at older ages, and by international comparison, the U.S. foreign born were among the
longest-lived persons in the world. CONCLUSION: Survival estimates based on reliable
Medicare data confirm that foreign-born adults have longer life expectancy at older
ages than native-born adults in the United States.
Type
Journal articleSubject
African AmericansAged
Aged, 80 and over
Emigration and Immigration
Female
Humans
Life Expectancy
Male
Medicare
Population Groups
Survival Rate
United States
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https://hdl.handle.net/10161/14769Published Version (Please cite this version)
10.1371/journal.pone.0037177Publication Info
Dupre, Matthew E; Gu, Danan; & Vaupel, James W (2012). Survival differences among native-born and foreign-born older adults in the United
States. PLoS One, 7(5). pp. e37177. 10.1371/journal.pone.0037177. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/14769.This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this
article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
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Matthew E. Dupre
Associate Professor in Population Health Sciences
Dr. Dupre is an Associate Professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences
and the Department of Sociology. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Center for Aging
and Human Development and member of the Cardiovascular Outcomes Group at the Duke
Clinical Research Institute. Dr. Dupre is a medical sociologist who specializes in
research on aging and the life course, health disparities, and cardiovascular disease
(CVD) outcomes in older adults. As an interdisciplinary researcher, he has foc
James Walton Vaupel
Research Professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy
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