Health Status Older Americans are living longer and feeling better. An overwhelming majority rate their health as good or excellent. Men and women report comparable levels of well-being. Americans born at the beginning of the 21st century are expected to live almost 30 years longer than those born at the turn of the 20th century. In 1997, a newborn baby girl could expect to live 79 years and a boy 74 years, compared to 51 years for a girl and 48 years for a boy born in 1900.
Life expectancy varies by race.
The average life expectancy for a Caucasian baby born in 1997 was six years higher than for an African-American baby born in the same year. In 1995 nearly 60 percent of people age 70 and older reported having arthritis, up slightly from 1984. Despite the prevalence of illness or chronic conditions, the proportion of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older with a chronic disability was 21 percent in 1994, down from 24 percent in 1982. During this time period, the older population grew significantly, and the number of older people estimated to have functional limitations increased by 600,000. This was considerably fewer, however, than the 1.5 million increase projected had disability rates not declined.