Life expectancy for Americans has reached an all-time high at 77.6 years according to statistics released February 28, 2005 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The gap between male and female life expectancy has declined to 5.3 years.  The gap peaked at 7.8 years in 1979. Record-high life expectancies were found for white males (75.4 years) and black males (69.2 years), as well as for white females (80.5 years) and black females (76.1 years).

Source:  CDC National Center for Health Statistics