In the United States, the gap between mortality rates of people with less than a high school education and college graduates has widened enormously in the time period between 1993 and 2001. According to a study published on May 13, 2008 in the open-access journal PLoS ONE, this gap has been attributed to significant decreases in death in the more educated from all causes, including heart disease, cancer, stroke, and other conditions, while death rates in the less educated remain unchanged.
This study, which is the first to examine more recent trends in socioeconomic inequalities in mortality from all causes, as well as focusin on several leading causes of death in the United States, was composed of epidemiologists from the American Cancer Society, scientists from the Centers for Disease Control and from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), and was led by Ahmedin Jemal, Ph.D. They used data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) and death certificate information on over 3.5 million deaths between 1993 and 2001.
They overall death rate from all causes in this data set decreased significantly amount the most educated men and women, with the largest decrease in mortality for black men. For those with less than a high school education, the death rate for the combined set of causes actually increased. This percent increase per year was largest among white women with less than 12 years of education (3.2%) but was also statistically significant (0.7%) in white women who had completed high school. The gap, according to the authors, was caused by a previously undocumented decrease in all cause death rate among more educated men (36% in black men and 25% in white men over the whole nine year interval,) largely attributed to decreases in death rates from HIV infection, cancer, and heart disease.
This indicates a widening gap in the United States. “This study finds the socioeconomic inequalities in mortality rates are not only failing to drop, they are actually increasing in the U.S.” said Otis W. Brawley, M.D., chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society. “People with less education have fewer financial resources, less access to health insurance or stable employment, and less health literacy. As a result, while the death rate among the most educated Americans is dropping dramatically, we’re seeing a real lack of progress or even worsening trends in the least educated persons. The gap between the best and worst off in the country is actually getting wider.”
About the American Cancer Society:
The American Cancer Society is dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by saving lives, diminishing suffering and preventing cancer through research, education, advocacy and service. Founded in 1913 and with national headquarters in Atlanta, the Society has 13 regional Divisions and local offices in 3,400 communities, involving millions of volunteers across the United States. For more information anytime, call toll free 1-800-ACS-2345 or visit
About PLoS ONE
All works published in PLoS ONE are open-access. Everything is immediately available – to read, download, redistribute, include in databases and otherwise use – without cost to anyone, anywhere, subject only to the condition that the original authorship and source are properly attributed. Copyright is retained by the authors. The Public Library of Science uses the Creative Commons Attribution License.
PLoS ONE is the first journal of primary research from all areas of science to employ both pre- and post-publication peer review to maximize the impact of every report it publishes. PLoS ONE is published by the Public Library of Science (PLoS), the Open-access publisher whose goal is to make the world’s scientific and medical literature a public resource.
Widening of Socioeconomic Inequalities in U.S. Death Rates, 1993-2001.
PLoS ONE 3(5): e2181.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002181
Click Here For Full Length Article
Written by Anna Sophia McKenney