Israelis are living longer: The average life expectancy for Jewish women in Israel will reach 94.9 years old by 2055, while Jewish men are expected to reach the average age of 88.7, according to a new life-expectancy forecast published by the Central Bureau of Statistics. The reports states that compared to 2008, Israelis now are expected to live a decade longer. Life expectancy in Israel rises by an average of one year every five years; a little less than one year for men and a little over one year for women. Due to the dropping mortality rate in Israel, the result of improving the country's health care system, 100 will soon be a common age in Israel, not just an outlier. By the end of the 21st century women will live to the average age of 99.7 and men will reach 95.2 years old. Jews are living slightly longer than Arabs. According to the forecast, life expectancy for Arab men is expected to rise from 75.7 years to 86.5 within the forecast period, while life expectancy for Arab woman is expected to leap from 79.6 to 92.5 years old. The forecast places Israeli men in the top five in the world behind Switzerland, Japan, and Scandinavian countries. The life expectancy for women is only in the top 10 among OECD countries. According to CBS economists, the sharp rise in life expectancy is good news but has far-reaching, dramatic economic consequences on the labor force, leisure culture and the health care system. One unavoidable consequence relates to the postponement of retiring and increasing the retirement age, mainly for women. Today, men retire at age 67 and women at 62. The Finance Ministry wants to raise retirement age to 70 for men and women. Increased life expectancy will also have a significant effect on pensions and life insurance rates. The real estate market will also be affected: Demand for assisted living is expected to increase, along with the demand for apartments to rent. Meanwhile, the government will have to invest more in providing assisted living and elderly homes.
