Does the Hispanic Paradox in U.S. Adult Mortality Extend to Disability?

Mark Hayward (), Robert Hummer, Chi-Tsun Chiu, César González-González and Rebeca Wong

Population Research and Policy Review, 2014, vol. 33, issue 1, 96 pages

Abstract: Studies consistently document a Hispanic paradox in U.S. adult mortality, whereby Hispanics have similar or lower mortality rates than non-Hispanic whites despite lower socioeconomic status. This study extends this line of inquiry to disability, especially among foreign-born Hispanics, since their advantaged mortality seemingly should be paired with health advantages more generally. We also assess whether the paradox extends to U.S.-born Hispanics to evaluate the effect of nativity. We calculate multistate life tables of life expectancy with disability to assess whether racial/ethnic and nativity differences in the length of disability-free life parallel differences in overall life expectancy. Our results document a Hispanic paradox in mortality for foreign-born and U.S.-born Hispanics. However, Hispanics’ low mortality rates are not matched by low disability rates. Their disability rates are substantially higher than those of non-Hispanic whites and generally similar to those of non-Hispanic blacks. The result is a protracted period of disabled life expectancy for Hispanics, both foreign- and U.S.-born. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Keywords: Hispanic paradox; Disability; Mortality; Disabled life expectancy; Nativity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11113-013-9312-7

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