State Variation in Life Expectancy and Its Relationship to Internal Migration in the United States

David Frankenfield, University of Pennsylvania

There are many mechanisms through which mortality can vary geographically. Population movement is one important potential mechanism, but there is not a consensus as to its effect. Using mortality statistics from the National Vital Statistics System and the US Census, this paper investigates state level mortality variation and its relationship to internal migration, measured over the life course. Five life tables (residence, inmigrant, nonmover, outmigrant, and nativity) were created for each sex-state combination, each indicative of a different migrant stream or streams. Using the life expectancy values from these different life tables, inequality measures are calculated for each migration regime. Anticipated results indicate that the internal migration of US citizens contributes to the attenuation of mortality differentials between states, suggesting that observable inequalities in health and mortality are worse for non-migrant populations in deprived areas.