Canada is now an “A” grade performer and ranks 9th among the 17 peer countries. In 2009, the number of potential years of life lost per 100,000 people in Canada and its peer countries ranged from a low of 2,458 years in Sweden to a high of 4,744 in the United States. In 2004—the most recent year of published data on the number of potential years of life lost in Canada—there was a premature mortality rate of 3,365 years of life lost per 100,000 population in Canada. In 2009, Canada’s estimated premature mortality rate dropped to 2,999 years of life lost per 100,000 population.1
Most countries perform well compared with the U.S., the only “D” performer on this indicator. One-third of the premature mortality rate in the U.S. can be attributed to deaths resulting from external causes, including accidents, suicides, and assaults. Premature death from assault in the U.S. is over four times higher than in Canada.2