Navajo man sitting on the bed of his pick-up truck in Monument Valley

Evidence of Increasing Differential Mortality: A Comparison of the HRS and SIPP

Working Paper by Barry P. Bosworth and Kan Zhang

July 1, 2015

Abstract This paper uses data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to explore the extent of a widening in life expectancies by socioeconomic status (SES) for older persons. We construct four alternative measures of SES, using educational attainment, average (career) earnings in the prime working…

Sources of Increasing Differential Mortality Among the Aged by Socioeconomic Status

Working Paper by Barry P. Bosworth, Gary Burtless, and Kan Zhang

June 19, 2015

Abstract This paper uses data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to explore the extent and causes of widening differences in life expectancy by socioeconomic status (SES) for older persons. We construct alternative measures of SES using educational attainment and average (career) earnings in the prime working ages of 41-50. We also use information…