Yes.
The life expectancy at birth for residents in Arizona’s Apache County was about 70 years in 2022, the most recent year for which data is available. The estimated life expectancy in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or North Korea, is 73.5 years, according to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
Apache County’s life expectancy is the shortest of all Arizona counties, and roughly 10 years lower than the statewide average.
More than 70% of Apache County’s population is Native American. Indigenous communities in the state tend to have higher rates of chronic illness and limited access to health care—circumstances that have been linked to shorter life expectancies.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs, or quick-response fact checks, about trending claims relating to Arizona.
Sources
- Arizona Department of Health Services, Arizona State Health Assessment 2024
- Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook, North Korea
- World Health Organization, Democratic People's Republic of Korea
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Life Expectancy
- The Institute for Health Metric and Evaluation, The State of Health in Arizona
- Census Reporter, Apache County, AZ
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The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting is partnering with Gigafact to produce timely fact briefs, or quick-response fact checks, about trending claims relating to Arizona.
