First Nations life expectancy 19 years lower than other Albertans

Alberta's provincial flag flies on a flag pole in Ottawa, June 30, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The average First Nations lifespan is now nearly two decades shorter than other Albertans, data from Alberta Health reveals.

In 2023, the average life expectancy for First Nations Albertans was 62.81 years. Non-First Nations Albertans, in comparison, had an average life expectancy of 81.88 years.

First Nations life expectancy in the province has fallen eight years since 2019 and is 10 years lower than at the turn of the century, contributing to a longevity gap between First Nations and other Albertans wider than at any point on record.

Between 1974-78, the difference in life expectancy between the Indigenous population and total population in the province was 15 years, according to a 1981 study from Health and Welfare Canada. By 1999, this difference in lifespan had been reduced to just seven years but has since grown to over 19 years.

Recent drivers of this disparity are the disproportionate effects of COVID-19 harms and the toxic drug crisis. The mortality rate for COVID-19 was up to 4.5 times higher among Indigenous peoples in Canada than the general population, and rates of unintentional opioid poisoning deaths are eight times higher among First Nations peoples in Alberta compared to non-First Nations peoples.

Unintentional opioid poisoning deaths among First Nations Albertans increased 366 per cent between 2016 and 2022. To put this number in context, the province’s health data dashboard shows there were 188 deaths from unintentional injury (eg. falls, poisonings, traffic accidents) and 975 deaths from any cause among First Nations populations in Alberta in 2016. In 2022, 344 First Nations people died from unintentional opioid poisoning.

Though the impacts of these epidemics have been dramatic, their inordinate impact on Indigenous communities is not exceptional. Regardless of year or cause of death surveyed, public health data shows higher mortality rates among First Nations peoples in Alberta.

Health inequities like the present decline in First Nations life expectancy are linked with systemic, and long-lasting inequalities, said Dr. Jessica Kolopenuk, associate professor and the Alberta Health Services (AHS) chair in Indigenous health at the University of Alberta’s faculty of medicine and dentistry.

“In a word, colonialism,” Kolopenuk said. “Life, living, and death in a post-colonizing society are shaped by violent conditions such as land and cultural dispossession, racism and gendered racism, socioeconomic and educational inequities, injured sovereignty, and so forth. There are many experiences and realities that lead to shorter Indigenous lives, but each reason is, in some part, connected to the violence of colonialism.”

Kolopenuk said that if conceptual shifts were made that emphasized “an even loftier goal of ending colonial violence” rather than closing health inequity gaps, it might support the well-being of Indigenous peoples and communities in “more transformative ways.”

The concept of healthiness itself has in some ways come from ideas about who and what is considered unhealthy, and has often involved preconceived notions of race, sexuality, ability, and gender, she said.

“In contrast, Indigenous systems of health and well-being, of miyo pimâtisiwin (living a good life), for example, have not typically shaped concepts of health in Canadian policy and medicine.”

Indigenous expertise, leadership, and governance are at the core of the work to transform health systems to benefit Indigenous people, Kolopenuk said, as is greater control over the data that guides health policy.

“Indigenous organizations like the First Nations Information Governance Centre, for example, have been leaders in advocating for Indigenous production of and control over Indigenous health and well-being data. Data tells stories that can be used to formulate policy and programming by and for Indigenous peoples.”

Health Minister Adriana LaGrange’s office said it is collaborating with First Nations partners in Alberta to explore the factors contributing to the decline in life expectancy among First Nations peoples and the disparity in life expectancy between First Nations and non-First Nations populations.

“Recognizing this issue, Alberta’s government is making historic investments in primary health care through the Modernizing Alberta’s Primary Health Care System (MAPS) initiative, which will provide approximately $12.7 million to First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities and organizations in 2025-2026 to improve access to culturally safe, primary health care programs,” LaGrange’s office said.

“We remain committed to working alongside First Nations leaders and both federal and provincial partners to strengthen health services in these communities, including enhancing health data and information.”