b'AGING IN THE 21ST CENTURYDifferences in Disease Rates Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, France,accounting for gender differences such as physical and Mortality Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Spain and Greece.functioning, disability, and disease reduces the It is not surprising that developing countries haveRates of heart disease, stroke, hypertension,difference. worse health outcomes than developed nations.diabetes, cancer, lung disease and disability areIn 2010, the first wave of TILDA launched. Striking differences exist, however, in the healthhighest in the US, lower in the UK, and in someThe health of 57- to 64-year-olds in Ireland is status of developed countries. Researchers arecases substantially lower in Western Europe.closer to that of the English than the Americans beginning to use the rich data available in theFor example, the prevalence of hypertension is(Savva et al. 2013). Health inequalities across network of HRS sister studies to understand moreabout 45% in the US, compared to about 40% ineducational levels are present in all three coun-about these differences.in England and 30% in Western Europe (Figuretries but are strongest in the US. Despite these One of the first published cross-national4-1). Health disparities by wealth are significantlydifferences, Americans are less likely to report comparisons of health status using HRS smaller in Europe than in the US and England.having fair or poor health than their counter-sister-study data finds prominent differencesSome of the difference could be explained by low- parts in England or Ireland. Part of the observed between the US and England (Banks et al. 2006).er disease incidence in Europe and longer survivalcross-national differences in health could be This study uses 2002 data from ELSA and HRSwith disease in the US, which combine to createaccounted for by differences in rates of disease to compare the prevalence of diabetes, hyperten- higher prevalence. But even wealthier Americansdiagnosis. Rates of undiagnosed hypertension are sion, heart disease, myocardial infarction, stroke,are worse off and have health that is comparablehigher in Ireland compared to the US (Mosca and lung disease and cancer among 55- to 64-year- to poorer Europeans.Kenny 2014).olds. Because of well-documented racial healthCrimmins, Garcia and Kim (2010) report sim- In follow-up work to their earlier study, disparities in the US, the analysis is limitedilar findings on the prevalence of diabetes, strokeBanks et al. (2010) again compare data from to non-Hispanic whites. Despite much greaterand heart disease in the 2004 waves of SHARE,ELSA and HRS using information from 2002 per-capita annual spending on health care inELSA and HRS. Nearly 11% of American mento 2006 to determine the rate of new illness the US, $7,014 (in 2016 dollars) versus $2,878over age 50 and almost 9% of American womenand mortality. For both younger (55 to 64) and in England, Americans aged 54 to 64 are muchreport having more than one of these conditions.older (70 to 80) individuals, Americans have a less healthy than English of the same age. SES isEuropeans and the English, by indicated by education and income. The health- contrast, are far less likely to report SES gradient exists in both countries for allmore than one condition. Across diseases except cancer. However, the US healthall countries studied, women disadvantage is present at every level of SES. experience more arthritis, depres-Extending the comparison to Europe by usingsive symptoms and hypertension, 2004 data from SHARE (along with 2004 datawhereas self-reported heart disease from ELSA and HRS) and expanding the agesis higher for men. There are no covered from 50 to 74, Avendano et al. (2009)consistent differences between men identify a strong US health disadvantage in com- and women in prevalence of stroke parison to western Europeans as well. As in Banksand diabetes. Womens self- et al. (2006), the analysis is limited to non-His- reported health is worse thanpanic whites. In 2004, SHARE included Sweden,mens across nations, but 68'