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How much you make can affect how long you live — that's the stark reality of a 

"Life expectancy has been rising fastest for people with higher education or income," the report states. "So the gap in longevity by socioeconomic status has been increasing."

That gap can be as big as 18 years, according to Jay Olshansky, a professor of Public Health and a research associate at the Center on Aging.

"If you look at one subgroup, African-American males with less than a high school education, their current life expectancy is roughly in the mid-to-high 60s," Olshansky said. The most highly educated subgroups, however, have a life expectancy "in the low 80s." 

Olshansky and Chris Farrell, economics editor for Marketplace Money and author of "Unretirement," joined MPR News' Kerri Miller to discuss this longevity gap: what causes it and how it will play out in coming decades.  

Consider the debate over raising the age at which people become eligible for Social Security benefits. Raising the retirement age to 70 means raising it higher than the life expectancy of some portions of the population — essentially, some people are expected never to collect.

"Our abstract conversations about income inequality really comes home to roost when you start think about life expectancy," Farrell said.

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"Life expectancy has been rising fastest for people with higher education or income," says a report from the National Academy of Sciences. "So the gap in longevity by socioeconomic status has been increasing."

The National Academy of Sciences has documented how growing income inequality is accompanied by an increasing gap in life expectancy between the rich and poor.

The longevity gap: How much you make affects how long you will live

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