We’re the CEOs of Peloton and the Hospital for Special Surgery. Living longer isn’t enough, we need to live better, too

Americans are living longer than ever before. But too often those extra years are not healthy ones — sapping the sweetness from what should be our golden years.

Today, babies born in the United States can expect to live more than 79 years, nearly eight years longer than the average just 50 years ago. Yet while the typical lifespan has risen, healthy life expectancy — the number of years a person can live in full health — hasn’t kept pace. In fact, the typical American “healthspan” has declined since the start of the 21st century.

In other words, we’re outliving previous generations — but spending more of those years managing pain, disability, and chronic disease. That reality underscores what conversations about life expectancy often miss: it’s not enough for our healthcare system to help people live longer. We must also ensure they can remain healthy as they age.

The growing gap between lifespans and healthspans is a global phenomenon, but it’s particularly stark in the United States. A recent study estimated that the typical U.S. healthspan is 12.4 years shorter than the typical lifespan, meaning Americans can expect to spend more than 12 years of their lives grappling with chronic disease. That’s nearly three years more than the global average. 

As lifespans have increased, this stretch of ill health has only gotten longer: in 2000, the difference between the typical U.S. lifespan and healthspan was less than 11........

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