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Are Americans Living Longer Under Donald Trump? What the Data Shows - Newsweek (opens in a new tab)

newsweek.com · 2026-09-18

Short answerEvidenceSource

Short answer

Mostly not supported

Mostly not supported.

The claims we could check match the study, but some claims were not covered by the evidence reviewed.

  • 1 supported
  • 5 not covered

Checked against the study summary. The full text wasn't available, so some details couldn't be settled either way.

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Follow the evidence trail
1
2

NewsLink checks it

Mostly not supported

The one claim we could check holds up. One of six claims matches the study. This overall rating is based only on the claims we could check. Five claims the study doesn't address.

  • 1 supported
  • 5 not covered
Open claim evidence
3
Then inspect each claim

Evidence layer

Claim by claim

Each claim gets a verdict. Expand it to see the evidence directly below.

6 claims in this story

Showing all 6 claimsChoose a verdict to focus the list.

Claim 1 of 6Not coveredRobert F. Kennedy Jr. said preliminary CDC data indicate the United States has reversed a 30-year decline in longevity.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated30-year decline in longevity

Why this verdict

The abstract-level paper profile does not mention Robert F. Kennedy Jr., preliminary CDC data, or a 30-year longevity trend. It reports 2024 period life-table estimates and 2023-to-2024 changes only, using final 2024 mortality statistics. The attributed quote may be reported accurately by the story, but the substantive '30-year decline' claim is not verifiable from the abstract-level paper evidence.

Claim 2 of 6Not coveredFederal data show U.S. life expectancy reached 79 years in 2024, the highest level ever recorded in the United States.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated79 years in 2024

Why this verdict

The paper abstract supports the 2024 overall life expectancy value: 79.0 years, up from 78.4 in 2023. However, the abstract-level profile does not state that 79.0 years is the highest level ever recorded in the United States, so that headline/lead claim outruns the available paper evidence at this depth.

1

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
Claim 3 of 6Not coveredThe article says U.S. life expectancy generally rose from the mid-1990s through the mid-2010s, then fell during the pandemic before rebounding to 78.4 years in 2023 and 79.0 years in 2024.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated78.4 years in 2023 and 79.0 years in 2024

Why this verdict

The paper abstract supports the 2023 and 2024 point estimates and the 0.6-year increase from 78.4 to 79.0 years. It does not provide the longer historical trajectory from the mid-1990s through the mid-2010s, the pandemic-era decline, or the broader rebound narrative, so those portions are not verifiable at abstract depth.

1

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
Claim 4 of 6Not coveredThe article says the recent life-expectancy gain reflected falling death rates across multiple categories, including heart disease, cancer and unintentional injuries such as drug overdoses.View evidenceHide evidence

Why this verdict

The paper profile supports that 2024 life expectancy was estimated from mortality data and increased from 2023 to 2024. But the abstract-level evidence does not report cause-specific mortality changes, including heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries, or drug overdoses. The cause-of-death explanation is therefore not verifiable at this depth.

1

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth for the United States in 2024 was 79.0 years, a 0.6-year increase from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“This report presents complete period life tables for the United States by Hispanic origin and race and sex, based on age-specific death rates in 2024.”
2

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
Claim 5 of 6Not coveredThe article says experts caution that it may take several more years of data to determine whether the recent increase is a sustained trend or mainly a recovery from the pandemic.View evidenceHide evidence

As statedseveral more years of data

Why this verdict

The paper abstract reports a one-year increase in period life expectancy from 2023 to 2024 but does not quote experts or discuss how many additional years of data would be needed to establish whether the increase is sustained rather than pandemic recovery. The caution is plausible and consistent with limited trend evidence, but it is not directly verifiable from the abstract-level paper profile.

1

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
Claim 6 of 6SupportedThe article says the improvement cannot clearly be credited to Trump, because longevity trends are shaped by long-term factors such as public health, medical advancements, overdose rates and demographics.View evidenceHide evidence

Why this verdict

The paper profile describes descriptive period life-table construction and reporting of 2023-to-2024 life-expectancy changes; it does not provide a causal or policy-attribution analysis. Thus the story’s hedged statement that the improvement cannot clearly be credited to Trump is consistent with the paper evidence. The specific list of broader drivers is not directly analyzed in the abstract, but the central no-clear-attribution framing is supported by the paper’s descriptive scope.

1

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth for the United States in 2024 was 79.0 years, a 0.6-year increase from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“This report presents complete period life tables for the United States by Hispanic origin and race and sex, based on age-specific death rates in 2024.”
2

Study evidence

Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase

“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
Then look for missing context

Context layer

What the story left out

Important study details the story did not include.

  • The report’s primary contribution is construction of official 2024 U.S. complete period life tables stratified by Hispanic origin, race, and sex, using age-specific death rates.

    The story reflects the existence of federal life-expectancy data, but it does not describe the paper’s main work as complete period life-table construction or note the stratification by Hispanic origin/race and sex.

    From secondary_data_period_life_table_construction

  • The report uses final 2024 mortality statistics, July 1, 2024 Census population estimates, and Medicare data for ages 66–99 with established NCHS life-table methods.

    The story refers generally to federal/CDC data and quotes a claim about preliminary data, but it does not reflect the paper’s specified final data inputs or life-table methodology.

    From secondary_data_period_life_table_construction

  • Sex-specific life expectancy increased from 2023 to 2024: males from 75.8 to 76.5 years and females from 81.1 to 81.4 years.

    The story presentation does not mention the sex-stratified estimates or the different size of the increase for males and females.

    From Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparison

  • Life expectancy increased from 2023 to 2024 across reported Hispanic-origin/race groups, with changes ranging from +0.5 to +1.0 year.

    The story does not report the race/Hispanic-origin subgroup results, including the larger increase for the American Indian and Alaska Native non-Hispanic group.

    From Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparison

  • The paper’s estimates are period life-expectancy measures reflecting age-specific mortality conditions in 2024, not cohort projections of how long people born in 2024 will actually live.

    The story presentation does not mention the period-life-table limitation. This is an interpretation-changing caveat because readers can otherwise misread life expectancy at birth as a cohort prediction.

    From secondary_data_period_life_table_construction; Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparison

  • The abstract reports point estimates and between-year differences but does not provide uncertainty intervals or sensitivity analyses.

    The story includes caution about needing more years of data, but it does not mention that the abstract-level paper evidence provides point estimates without uncertainty measures.

    From Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparison

  • Different subgroup estimation methods are used for some racial/Hispanic-origin groups, which may affect direct comparability across groups.

    Because the story does not discuss subgroup estimates, it also omits the related methodological caveat about subgroup comparability.

    From secondary_data_period_life_table_construction; Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparison

1 thing the story did carry across
  • Overall U.S. life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.
Then read the study layer

Study layer

Study at a glance

Scan the study first. Expand only the parts you want to inspect.

Pieces of work

2

Evidence read

study summary

Lead result

secondary data

1Lead resultsecondary dataProduce and report the official complete period life tables for the United States for 2024, stratified by Hispanic origin, race, and sex, using final 2024 mortality statistics plus population/Medicare inputs and established NCHS life-table methods.secondary data period life table constructionExpand

In plain English

The report constructs official complete period life tables for the United States for 2024, stratified by Hispanic origin, race, and sex, using 2024 final mortality statistics, July 1, 2024 population estimates (Census blended base), and 2024 Medicare data for ages 66–99, applying established NCHS life-table estimation methods (Hispanic-origin method as developed for 2006; same approach for AIAN non-Hispanic and Asian non-Hispanic; other groups using methodology first implemented in 2008).

Key findings

  • Overall life expectancy at birth for the United States in 2024 was 79.0 years, a 0.6-year increase from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase
  • Male life expectancy at birth increased from 75.8 years in 2023 to 76.5 years in 2024 (0.7-year increase); female life expectancy increased from 81.1 to 81.4 years (0.3-year increase).Males: 0.7 year increase; Females: 0.3 year increase
“This report presents complete period life tables for the United States by Hispanic origin and race and sex, based on age-specific death rates in 2024.”
What this piece can’t prove
  • Estimates are period life-table measures reflecting age-specific death rates in 2024 (not cohort projections).
  • The abstract does not report subgroup sample sizes, data quality assessments, or potential biases in population denominators or death classification that could affect subgroup estimates.

1 further detail could not be confirmed from the summary.

2secondary dataQuantify and describe the 2024 levels and 2023-to-2024 changes in life expectancy at birth overall and by sex and by Hispanic origin/race groups.Descriptive period life-table estimation and between-year comparisonExpand

In plain English

The report presents 2024 complete period life tables for the United States and quantifies life expectancy at birth in 2024 and changes from 2023 overall, by sex, and by Hispanic-origin/race groups. Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024 (up 0.6 year from 78.4 in 2023). Sex-stratified estimates were 76.5 years for males (up 0.7 year from 75.8) and 81.4 years for females (up 0.3 year from 81.1). By group, life expectancy at birth changed from 2023 to 2024 as follows: American Indian and Alaska Native non-Hispanic 70.1 → 71.1 (+1.0), Black non-Hispanic 74.0 → 74.8 (+0.8), Asian non-Hispanic 85.2 → 85.8 (+0.6), Hispanic 81.3 → 81.8 (+0.5), and White non-Hispanic 78.4 → 78.9 (+0.5).

Key findings

  • Overall life expectancy at birth was 79.0 years in 2024, an increase of 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.0.6 year increase
  • Male life expectancy at birth increased from 75.8 years in 2023 to 76.5 years in 2024 (+0.7 year); female life expectancy increased from 81.1 to 81.4 years (+0.3 year).males: 0.7 year increase; females: 0.3 year increase
“In 2024, the overall expectation of life at birth was 79.0 years, increasing 0.6 year from 78.4 years in 2023.”
What this piece can’t prove
  • Abstract presents point estimates and between-year differences but does not report uncertainty measures (e.g., standard errors or confidence intervals) for the life expectancy estimates.
  • Estimates are period life expectancy measures (reflecting mortality conditions in 2024) and do not represent cohort life expectancy.
  • Different subgroup estimation methods are used for some racial/Hispanic-origin groups (Hispanic-origin method for Hispanic, AIAN non-Hispanic, Asian non-Hispanic; other method for other groups), which may affect direct comparability across groups.
Finally, the search trail

Method layer

NewsLink found the paper. Tessa takes you deeper.

NewsLink checks the story. Tessa is where you inspect the paper, authors, evidence, and research context.

Papers considered

The selected paper, plus nearby candidates.

Crossref, PubMed, Europe PMC · 15 candidate papers

Candidate

Cause of Death and Active Life Expectancy in the Older Population of the United States

Journal of Aging and Health · 1998 · Crossref

Source (opens in a new tab)

And 9 more candidates considered.