Mortality and Race and Ethnicity in the United States
May 2024
Author
Nicola Barrett, FSA, MAAA
Consulting Actuary
Milliman Inc.
Overview
Mortality rates have decreased significantly over the 20th century, but patterns of mortality disparities by race and ethnicity persist in the United States. People are usually categorized by one racial group and one ethnic group, usually of their own choice — that is common on applications, health forms and the like. In biological terms, human physical variations can and do tend to overlap with little scientific variation among races. Proponents of race as a social construct theorize there is as much or more genetic variation within major population groups as between them. The purpose of this research is to aid actuaries in their work in identifying, measuring, modeling and analyzing possible mortality differentials when considering full U.S. population analysis.
Materials
Mortality and Race and Ethnicity in the United States
Mortality and Race and Ethnicity in the United States Appendices
Acknowledgments
The author’s deepest gratitude goes to those without whose efforts this project could not have come to fruition: the volunteers who generously shared their wisdom, insights, advice, guidance and arm’s-length review of this study prior to publication. Any opinions expressed may not reflect their opinions nor those of their employers. Any errors belong to the author alone.
Project Oversight Group members:
Jennifer Haid, FSA
Edward Hui, FSA
Tom Kukla, FSA, MAAA
Jose Leason, ASA
Madeleine Zhang, FSA
Yifan Zhang, FSA, MAAA
Anji Li Zhao, FSA, CERA, MAAA
At the Society of Actuaries Research Institute:
Lisa Schilling, FSA, EA, FCA, MAAA, Sr. Research Actuary
Jan Schuh, Sr. Research Administrator
Ronora Stryker, ASA, MAAA, Sr. Practice Research Actuary
At Milliman Inc.:
Randy Beams, FSA, MAAA, Actuary
Robert Eaton, FSA, MAAA, Principal and Consulting Actuary
Gordon Dzotrah, Actuarial Assistant
Stephanie Scholz, Actuarial Analyst
Ricardo Trachtman, FSA, MAAA, Principal and Consulting Actuary
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