California has a higher life expectancy than much of the US, report says. Here’s how long

California has the fourth highest life expectancy at birth in the United States, according to a new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

Life expectancy is an estimated average number of additional years a person of a certain age is anticipated to live.

In an August National Vital Statistics Reports from CDC, the “U.S. State Life Tables” ranks the 50 states and Washington D.C. based on age-specific death rates. The agency looked at mortality data from 2020, population estimates from the 2010 decennial census and Medicare statistics for people aged 66 to 99 in 2020.

For life expectancy calculated from birth, California ranked at four with a total life expectancy of 79 years, male life expectancy at 76 and female life expectancy at 82. The study found that western states, such as Hawaii, Idaho and Oregon, and northeastern states, such as Connecticut and Massachusetts, have the highest life expectancy at birth.

Mostly southern states — Alabama, Arkansas and Kentucky — had the lowest life expectancy at birth. Mississippi ranked last on the list at 51 with a total life expectancy of about 72 years, male life expectancy at about 69 and female life expectancy at 75.

When looking at life expectancy at 65, California ranked at two. The total life expectancy is 19 years in the state, meaning people at the age of 65 can expect to live an additional 19 years. Men can expect about 18 years and women about 21.