Life expectancy in Chicago drops by 20 years over just 5 city miles: Loop residents have an average life expectancy of 87 years, while residents of West Garfield Park, just 7 stops away on the Green Line, can only expect to live 67 years. These two decades mark the largest life expectancy gap of any big city in the United States. On November 20, 2025, WBEZ’s Kristen Schorsch reported on this sobering disparity and the factors that contribute to ill health in the region. C3EN Community Engagement Core co-director David Ansell and CSAC member Ayesha Jaco, executive director of West Side United, both weigh in.
In a city with a deep history of segregation, Chicago public health officials view the gap through the lens of race. They say four main drivers — heart disease, homicide, opioid overdoses and cancer — fuel shorter lives among Chicagoans who are Black compared to residents of other races. In many cases, these deaths are preventable.