The Life Expectancy Gap between Registered Disabled and Non-Disabled People in Korea from 2004 to 2017

Abstract

This study aimed to estimate and compare life expectancy at birth among people with and without officially registered disabilities in Korea between 2004 and 2017. We used the National Health Information Database in Korea to obtain aggregate data on the numbers of population and deaths according to calendar year (2004 to 2017), sex, age groups, and officially registered disability status. A total of 697,503,634 subjects and 3,536,778 deaths, including 33,221,916 disabled subjects (829,464 associated deaths), were used to construct life tables. Between 2004 and 2017, life expectancy for people with disabilities increased by 9.1 years in men and 8.3 years in women, while life expectancy for the non-disabled increased by 5.5 years in men and 4.6 years in women. The average life expectancy difference between non-disabled and disabled people was 18.2 years during the study period, decreasing from 20.4 years in 2004 to 16.4 years in 2017. In 2017, the life expectancy of people with the most severe grade of disabilities was 49.7 years, while the life expectancy of people with the least severe grade of disabilities was 77.7 years. The government should implement more effective policies to protect the health of people with officially registered disabilities.

Crisis Standards of Care in the USA: A Systematic Review and Implications for Equity Amidst COVID-19

“…However, given the well-described and profoundly unequal distribution of illness between racial and ethnic groups in the US [ 37 – 41 ], the consideration of comorbid conditions such as hypertension [ 42 ], diabetes [ 43 , 44 ],, and chronic kidney disease [ 45 ], is likely to function as a proxy for allocation of resources by race and ethnicity. Similarly, individuals with disabilities have a greater incidence of comorbid health conditions [ 46 ], and have more limited life expectancies [ 47 ] than able-bodied individuals. Consideration of long-term prognosis in allocation decisions may prove problematic, as CSC from Pennsylvania acknowledge: “Based on consultation with experts… we have intentionally not included a list of example conditions associated with life expectancy <1 year and <5 years… [to avoid decisions] being applied as blanket judgments, rather than in the context of individualized assessments by clinicians, based on the best available objective medical evidence.” [ 48 ]…”

“…However, given the well-described and profoundly unequal distribution of illness between racial and ethnic groups in the US [37][38][39][40][41], the consideration of comorbid conditions such as hypertension [42], diabetes [43,44],, and chronic kidney disease [45], is likely to function as a proxy for allocation of resources by race and ethnicity. Similarly, individuals with disabilities have a greater incidence of comorbid health conditions [46], and have more limited life expectancies [47] than able-bodied individuals.…”

Age- and cause-specific contributions to the life expectancy gap between Medical Aid recipients and National Health Insurance beneficiaries in Korea, 2008–2017

“…The detailed analytical procedures, including the mathematical formulae, have been described elsewhere [10][11][12]. The Kannisto-Thatcher method and Arriaga's life expectancy decomposition method have been used in previous Korean studies [13][14][15][16]. The National Health Insurance Service of Korea and the Seoul National University Hospital Institutional Review Board approved all aspects of this study.…”

Development and sensibility assessment of a health‐related quality of life instrument for adults with severe disabilities who are non‐ambulatory

“…These combined disabilities cause difficulties in activities in daily living, communication, mobility and health in such a way that these individuals highly depend on others such as caregivers or health care professionals for the main part of their daily needs (Narayanan et al, 2006 ). As life expectancy increases for these individuals, like the general population (Bahk et al, 2019 ) (Jones et al, 2015 ), there is a growing number of adults with severe motor and intellectual disabilities who are non‐ambulatory. A small number of them still lives with their family, while others stay in residential facilities for adults with intellectual disabilities where direct support professionals (DSP's) support them in nearly all aspects of their daily lives.…”