April 16, 2013
Life expectancy gap narrows
The gap between Māori and non-Māori life expectancy has narrowed, but Māori death rates are still higher than non Māori at nearly all ages.
Statistics New Zealand says Māori life expectancy at birth reached 72.8 years for males and 76.5 years for females between 2010 and 2013, just 7.3 years less than non-Māori.
That compares with a gap of just over 9 years in 1997.
Population statistics manager Andrea Blackburn says about 60 percent of the difference between Māori and non-Māori life expectancy comes from higher death rates at ages 50 to 79 years.
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