12 December 2012 | 17:58

New Yorkers live longer than other Americans: mayor

New Yorkers are living longers than Americans overall, and the margin is increasing, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday as he praised his administration's health policies, AFP reports. A New Yorker born in 2010 has a life expectancy of 80.9 years, 2.2 years longer than the national life expectancy of 78.7 years at the time. Since 2001, New Yorkers' life expectancy has increased by three years, against 1.8 years at the national level, according to data released by Bloomberg and the city's health department. Women in New York are now expected to live 83.3 years and men are expected to live 78.1 years. Bloomberg has aggressively pushed for sweeping public health policies. In 2003, he banned smoking in bars, restaurants and places of work, a measure widely reproduced elsewhere. He again stirred controversy this year by announcing a limited ban on super-sized soda drinks he blamed for a national obesity crisis. "Not only are New Yorkers living longer, but our improvements continue to outpace the gains in the rest of the nation," Bloomberg said. "Our willingness to invest in health care and bold interventions is paying off in improved health outcomes, decreased infant mortality and increased life expectancy."

New Yorkers are living longers than Americans overall, and the margin is increasing, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday as he praised his administration's health policies, AFP reports. A New Yorker born in 2010 has a life expectancy of 80.9 years, 2.2 years longer than the national life expectancy of 78.7 years at the time. Since 2001, New Yorkers' life expectancy has increased by three years, against 1.8 years at the national level, according to data released by Bloomberg and the city's health department. Women in New York are now expected to live 83.3 years and men are expected to live 78.1 years. Bloomberg has aggressively pushed for sweeping public health policies. In 2003, he banned smoking in bars, restaurants and places of work, a measure widely reproduced elsewhere. He again stirred controversy this year by announcing a limited ban on super-sized soda drinks he blamed for a national obesity crisis. "Not only are New Yorkers living longer, but our improvements continue to outpace the gains in the rest of the nation," Bloomberg said. "Our willingness to invest in health care and bold interventions is paying off in improved health outcomes, decreased infant mortality and increased life expectancy."

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