The world has nearly won back the years the pandemic stole

Before the pandemic, a baby born anywhere in the world could expect to live 73.4 years. By 2021 the coronavirus had dragged that down to 71.5 — nearly two years of human life, gone. Now the World Health Organization's latest worldwide numbers, covering 2000 to 2023, show the rebound: 73.3 years in 2023, just a whisper below the pre-pandemic peak. The catch: years lived in good health are recovering more slowly — 62.8, still short of 2019 — so the next job is making those extra years healthy ones, not just longer ones. ‘Living longer is one of the great achievements of public health,’ said Dr Alain Labrique of the WHO.