The two-year decline in healthy life expectancy in Britain, set out in new analysis from the Health Foundation thinktank, is devastating. In a wealthy country like the UK, at a time of rapid advances in the treatment of illnesses including obesity and cancer, people should not be living with sickness or disability earlier than they were a decade ago.
The report draws on a survey that relies on self-reporting, so is less objective than statistics based on births and deaths. Worsening mental health among younger adults is the area of sharpest deterioration and in some age groups, physical health was reported as having improved. But healthy life expectancy is a useful measure of quality of life and the findings have serious implications for public services. When, in 2028, the retirement age rises to 67, the average person will be in poor health more than six years before they are due to stop work. The researchers state that the decline cannot be put down to the pandemic. Northern Ireland was excluded due to a lack of data.
