2019年12月大学英语四级听力VOA慢速英语(21)

1、2019年12月大学英语四级听力VOA慢速英语(21)AS IT IS 2016-04-18 Rich Americans Will Live 10 YearsLongerSupporters of a bill to raise Californias minimum wagecelebrate outside the state Senate Chamber after the measurewas approved by the Senate, March 31, 2016, in Sacramento,California. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)As

2、Americans discuss the issue of income inequality in anelection year, a new study says rich people will live up to 15years longer than poor ones.A rich 40-year-old man in the United States can expect tolive until about 87. A poor 40-year-old man might only live until73.The difference in length of lif

3、e as it relates to income ispart of a new study published in the Journal of the AmericanMedical Association.The Health Inequality Project studied about 1.4 billionincome tax records from a 15-year period ending in 2014. Whilepeople might have guessed that wealth allows for a longer life,the study re

4、viewed more data than any similar studies in thepast.Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is running for theDemocratic Party nomination. He often talks of the gap betweenrich and poor in the United States. Rich people havebetter access health care than poor people, and that can increase theirlifespan.Sand

5、ers launched his campaign almost a year ago. In his speech,he said,“the issue of wealth and income inequality is the great moralissue of our time, it is the great economic issue of our time and it is thegreat political issue of our time.”Angus Deaton wrote a column about the study on the medicalasso

6、ciations website. He says a study like the Health Inequality Projectis important because it will help people understand whether“tax anddistribution policies could be effective tools of public health andpotentially extend life expectancy.”The study backed up the assumption that wealthy people livelon

7、ger than poor people. But it also revealed something new.The researchers say it is not only bad to be poor. They say it isworse to be poor in certain parts of the United States than others.Poor people in depressed cities like Detroit, Michigan; Toledo,Ohio; and Gary, Indiana are worse off than poor

8、people in places like SanFrancisco, California and New York City.Recently, the governor of Michigan declared a state of emergencyin the city of Flint. The water supply for its 100,000 residents becamecontaminated with lead.Drinking water contaminated with lead is harmful to peopleshealth, according

9、to the Environmental Protection Agency.The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People(or NAACP) is an organization that fights against dis crimination. It saysmore would have been done“if nearly40 percent of Flint residents were not living below the poverty line.”The opposite is also

10、 true. The researchers say poor people wholive near rich people may be healthier because they see better examplesof how to live. They also may be healthier because wealthier placesusually have better public health services.At the same time, poor people will struggle even more indepressed cities.The

11、authors of the study say they are aware of some of theproblems with their report. For example, the study measures lifeexpectancy starting at age 40. That does not fully consider causes ofdeath that affect younger people and children.They also say there is not a good way to understand some of thecoincidentalbenefits of having a higher income.Deaton writes the wealth