Trends and Differentials in Mortality between New York and California, 1980-2010

Mila Andreeva, City University of New York (CUNY)
John R. Wilmoth, United Nations Population Division
Magali Barbieri, Institut National d'Études Démographiques (INED) and University of California, Berkeley
Elizabeth Arias, National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), CDC
Robert N. Anderson, National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), CDC
Celeste Winant, University of California, Berkeley

Over 1980-1996 life expectancy at birth in California has been persistently higher than in New York, with males living longer by 1.5-2 years and females by a single year. Over 1996-2004, due to more rapid decline of mortality in New York, New York caught up with California, and now levels of life expectancy at birth in both states are virtually the same. Age-specific analysis also reveals a peculiar of pattern of mortality differentials below age 20: infant mortality in New York has been always higher than in California, child mortality levels, ages 1-9, were similar, while teenage mortality 10-14, and, especially, 15-19, was significantly higher in California.