Minor gradient in mortality by education at the highest ages

Roland Rau, Magdalena Muszyńska-Spielauer and Paul Eilers
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Roland Rau: Universität Rostock
Magdalena Muszyńska-Spielauer: Johannes Kepler Universität Linz
Paul Eilers: Erasmus University Medical Center

Demographic Research, 2013, vol. 29, issue 19, 507-520

Abstract: Background: Socioeconomic mortality differentials are known to exist almost universally. Many studies show a trend towards convergence with increasing age. Information about the highest ages is very rare, though. Objective: We want to find out whether socioeconomic factors determine the chance of death in the United States among the oldest people. Methods: Based on official death count records, we employ the extinct cohort method to estimate the age-specific probability of dying by level of education. Results: We present evidence that socioeconomic differentials in mortality exist even at the highest ages (95+), although the gap is small. Comments: To our knowledge, this is the first population-based study to analyze socioeconomic mortality differentials at ages 95 and higher. We present, furthermore, a novel field of application for the extinct cohort method.

Keywords: oldest old mortality; socioeconomic differentials; extinct cohort (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J1 Z0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:dem:demres:v:29:y:2013:i:19

DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2013.29.19

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