Premature mortality, Texas, 1978.
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Date
2014-09-16Author
Texas. Bureau of State Health Planning
& Resource Development. Division of Data Collection and Analysis.
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Show full item recordAbstract
Overall statistics on causes of death are dominated by the fact
that most deaths occur in the older population, typically over
the age of 65. In 1978, for example, over 60 percent of all
deaths in Texas occurred in this age group. As a result, the
impact of the major causes of death is greatly influenced by
mortality late in life.
Evaluating mortality in this manner assumes that in terms of
societal costs, each instance of death is equal. From this perspective,
the death of an individual at age 25 is viewed no differently
from that of an individual at age 65. However, if
the societal costs of these two events were to be compared, the
age at death would have to be taken into consideration. The
potential contribution to society of the younger individual is
much greater simply because more time is available for productivity.