American Indian and Alaska Native Life Expectancy: Writing a New Narrative

A silent crisis is occurring across American Indian and Alaska Native populations. Early death robs families, tribes, and generations of their culture, kinship systems, and lineage. In 2021, American Indian and Alaska Native life expectancy at birth was 65.2 years, the lowest of any racial or ethnic group in the US and 10 years less than that of the general population.1 Advances in public health, policy, and medicine during the last 79 years have not equitably increased American Indian and Alaska Native life expectancy; it is the same as the US life expectancy rate in 1944.2 The University of New Mexico’s Center for Native American Health is writing a new narrative about life expectancy; this reframing is essential for addressing current disparities and inequalities in American Indian and Alaska Native populations.