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Financial Times — World — Measuring Progress — Sarah O'Connor — Global Economy — Social Affairs

There is more to life and death than GDP

The US lacks statutory entitlement to paid maternity leave or paid sick leave. GDP is an insufficient measure of national prosperity. Life expectancy is a solid measure of progress, highlighting disparities among rich countries.

1 min read
  • US has no statutory entitlement to paid maternity leave or paid sick leave at the national level.
  • GDP is an insufficient measure of national prosperity or living standards.
  • Life expectancy is a solid quantitative metric and important supplementary measure of a country's progress.
  • US falls behind in life expectancy compared to other rich countries.
  • GDP and life expectancy tend to roughly correlate, but there are exceptions.
There is more to life and death than GDP
Economic growth isn’t the only way to compare how well countries are doing
Financial TimesSarah O'Connor

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