Years of Life Lost Associated with COVID-19 Deaths in the United States During the First Year of the Pandemic

Quast, T.; Andel, R.; Gregory, S.; Storch, E. A.

Background: Years of Life Lost (YLL) measure the shortfall in life expectancy due to a medical condition and have been used in multiple contexts. Previously it was estimated that there were 1.2 million YLLs associated with COVID-19 deaths in the United States through July 11, 2020. The aim of this study is to update YLL estimates for the first full year of the pandemic. Methods: We employed data regarding COVID-19 deaths in the United States through January 31, 2021 by jurisdiction, gender, and age group. We used actuarial life expectancy tables by gender and age to estimate YLLs. Results: We estimated roughly 3.9 million YLLs due to COVID-19 deaths, which corresponds to roughly 9.2 YLLs per death. We observed a large range across states in YLLs per 10,000 capita, with New York City at 298 and Vermont at 12. Nationally, males had a higher number of YLLs per death than females (9.5 versus 8.8), but there was significant variation in gender differences across states. Conclusions: Our estimates provide further insight into the mortality effects of COVID-19. The observed differences across states and genders demonstrate the need for disaggregated analyses of the effects of the pandemic.