Life Expectancy Gaps in Northern Virginia, 2019-2023

In 2023, Northern Virginia Health Foundation released Dying Too Soon: In Northern Virginia, the Risk of Dying Before Age 75 Depends on Race, Ethnicity and Address. The report offered a unique look at how death rates vary across Northern Virginia, focusing on two time periods: 2015 to 2019, before the pandemic struck, and 2020 to 2021, at the height of the pandemic.

The Foundation’s latest research, conducted by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center on Society and Health, reveals persistent disparities in premature mortality and life expectancy across the region’s counties, despite post-pandemic recovery. The new research covers 2019-2023, the five-year period with the most recently available data.

Despite the affluence of Northern Virginia, the population continues to face a disturbing risk of premature deaths (before age 75) due to life-threatening diseases and injuries. 

Across the region: 

• Life expectancy gaps remain 10–19 years within jurisdictions

• Disparities by race/ethnicity persist in leading causes of death (e.g., COVID ranking higher among Hispanic and Black populations)

• COVID mortality declined 60–80% across jurisdictions

• Non-COVID causes of death are rising (heart disease, stroke, overdoses, suicide, infant mortality)

To address these disparities, the region must tackle the root causes of systemic health inequity. That includes investing in policies to widen access to quality health care and promote healthy behaviors, as well as reducing socioeconomic hardship, racial or ethnic discrimination, and food and housing insecurity.