Israeli male life expectancy in decline amid COVID pandemic — TV

Arab Israelis suffer biggest impact, with a drop of 1.5 years compared to 2019; numbers likely to fall further due to many more virus-related deaths this year

By ToI Staff 2 September 2021, 5:16 pm

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Illustrative: Hadassah Ein Kerem medical staff work in the coronavirus ward of the hospital in Jerusalem, on August 25, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Life expectancy among men in Israel dropped by some 3.5 months during 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic took thousands of lives, according to a Wednesday television report.

In 2019, the average lifespan among Israeli men was 81, while in 2020 it dropped to 80.7, Channel 13 news reported.

The network said it was the sharpest decline since 1996.

Arab Israeli men suffered the biggest impact, with a decline of a year and a half, from 78.1 in 2019 to 76.6 in 2020.

This was the lowest figure seen since 2010, according to the data presented by Channel 13.

Among women, the average lifespan in 2020 showed a slowdown in the rise it had been seeing over the last few years, but was not in decline, the report said. It currently stands at some 84.5.

From the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, 3,338 people in Israel died in 2020 as a result of COVID-19 and its complications.

As of Thursday morning, the total death toll stands at 7,090 according to Health Ministry data. The network said the life expectancy numbers are expected to decline further, as a significant number of deaths were recorded this year.

Israel is still among the world’s top 10 nations for life expectancy. But that could change once the data is compiled at the end of this year.