https://www.newsweek.com/why-are-death-disability-rising-among-young-americans-opinion-1837006
America's labor force is facing a crisis, and no one knows exactly why. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of American adults considered unable to work grew by more than
3.5 million since January 2020, with 1.5 million added just in the first nine months of this year.
That's a concerning 12 percent hike. But among the
labor force, in particular, the disability number grew an astonishing
33 percent since January 2020. Over the same time period, America has seen what one insurance insider calls an "
open secret" of increased excess deaths—the number of people dying above what is expected. These shocking developments are surely contributing to ongoing labor shortages. People are leaving work at younger ages, in greater numbers, and from diseases seen mostly in later life.
We need an unbiased, nonpartisan investigation into this troubling trend.
Record-high rates of incapacitation threaten our economy and signal continuing waves of early death.
Consider that 25 percent more 15-to-19-year-olds than expected—about a thousand young people—died in the first five months of 2023, according to an
analysis of federal data. They are among 87,000 additional people who died in those months. Compared to pre-pandemic numbers, those Americans should still be alive.
While government agencies invest little effort in examining these worrisome developments, some in the insurance industry are sounding the alarm. Finance and indemnity experts in the nonprofit
Insurance Collaboration to Save Lives (ICSL) are urging insurers to address the simmering health problems reflected in
disability statistics.
