NPR

Death Rate Among Black Americans Declines, Especially For Elderly People

The CDC says the death rate for black Americans fell 25 percent over 17 years and was especially dramatic for those 65 and older. But young black people are still dying earlier than white Americans.
The death rate for African-Americans dropped 25 percent over 17 years, but most of that was among people ages 65 and older.

For decades, black Americans have been dying at a higher rate than white Americans.

That's still true overall. But now there's some good news about this long, disturbing trend: The overall death rate for black Americans fell 25 percent between 1999 and 2015, according to a released Tuesday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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