CDC rankings for life expectancy in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2021 were released Wednesday.
South Carolina ranked 42nd on the list, meaning that life expectancy in the Palmetto State is lower than it is in 82% of the country.
Overall, the CDC reports a life expectancy of 73.5 years for South Carolinians – nearly eight fewer years than for residents of Hawaii, which had the country’s longest life expectancy, 79.9 years.
Mississippi had the lowest life expectancy, 70.9 years, which was higher than the male life expectancy in South Carolina, 70.4 years.
Female life expectancy in the Palmetto State was 76.7 years, which ranked 43rd among the states and D.C.
“I don't know that we have a complete understanding of why that discrepancy does exist in life expectancy,” said Jean Neils-Strunjas, a professor and chair in communication sciences and disorders at the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health.
What she is more sure of is that South Carolina fares poorly in two key areas: health factors and prevalence of healthcare in general.
“Factors like vascular health, heart health, [and] brain health all contribute to how long you live and how well you live,” she said, adding that the numbers tend to be “better in other states.”
Among the 50 states and D.C. in 2022: United Health Foundation (UHF) ranked South Carolina 33rd in cardiovascular health; the CDC ranked heart-related mortality in South Carolina 36th; and Mental Health America ranked South Carolina 22nd in brain health.
“We also know that South Carolina does not have as many doctors and hospitals as other states.”
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, South Carolina had 323 hospitals in 2019, or one for every 15,940 residents. That’s better than the national average of 23,540 people per hospital.
But according to Becker’s Hospital Review in February, South Carolina had fewer than 128 primary care doctors per 100,000 residents.
“Certain specialties have much lower numbers than in other states,” Neils-Strunjas said. That’s especially true for older adults who are in rural settings [and] will have difficulty finding a doctor."
According to the South Carolina Office of Rural Health, six rural hospitals have left the state since 2010.
Meanwhile, South Carolina has a higher median age than the U.S. median, according to the U.S. Census, and was ranked among the 10 least healthy states in the country by UHF in 2022.
