Milwaukee residents are living longer again, at least on paper. The city’s average life expectancy has crept back up to roughly 74 years as the worst of the pandemic recedes. But a new community health assessment makes it plain that overdoses, firearm violence and deep racial inequities are still cutting decades off many lives, and that the citywide average hides stark gaps by race, gender and neighborhood, as reported by the City of Milwaukee.
The Milwaukee Health Department’s 2025 Community Health Assessment leans on more than 3,400 resident surveys, 46 interviews and 14 focus groups to chart health trends and priorities, according to the City of Milwaukee. Officials say the findings will be shared with hospitals, nonprofits and other city departments to steer programs and funding. "It provides a shared foundation for City departments and our partners to make informed decisions that support healthier communities," Mayor Cavalier Johnson said in the release.
The assessment reports that life expectancy slid to about 72.2 years during the height of COVID-19 and has since rebounded to a citywide average of roughly 74.1 years, with women averaging about 77.9 years and men about 70.2, according to WUWM. That recovery is far from even, with Black residents and men in particular seeing slower gains, the data show.
Overdoses and Violence Are Shaving Years Off Lives
To get beyond simple averages, the CHA tallies years of life lost before age 75. Unintentional overdoses now account for nearly 20% of those years, with each overdose shortening life by about 27 years, according to the City of Milwaukee. Firearm homicides pack an even more brutal punch per incident: the assessment estimates roughly 44 years lost per firearm homicide, and firearm deaths make up about 10% of years lost before 75.
Infant Mortality and Racial Disparities Stand Out
One of the most jarring findings involves the city’s youngest residents. Black infants account for about 38% of births in Milwaukee but represent roughly two-thirds of infant deaths, a gap the assessment connects to housing, economic pressures and unequal access to health care, according to WUWM. The report also points to aging housing stock as a chronic threat: about 85% of residential units were built before the 1978 lead-paint ban, creating long-term risks for children’s development and family health. Those layered disparities help explain how the overall life expectancy number can tick up even while some neighborhoods see little, if any, improvement.
Access to Care Is Still Patchy
The assessment finds that roughly 15% of adults say they do not have a regular health-care provider, even as many people piece together coverage from employers and public programs. In focus groups, residents described long waits for appointments, confusing health systems and the constant drag of housing or economic strain that makes it difficult to get preventive care or stick with treatment plans once they start.
What Comes Next
Health department leaders say the CHA is meant to be a practical playbook for partners, helping shape the Community Health Improvement Plan, support grant applications and target investments where they can cut early death and disability. The authors stress that clinic-level fixes alone will not erase the gaps; they say housing policy, violence prevention, substance-use treatment and coordinated investments across sectors all have to be part of the response.
For now, the numbers suggest Milwaukee has taken a modest step forward overall, but the CHA underscores how fragile and uneven that progress is. Turning longer lives from a citywide statistic into a reality across all neighborhoods will take sustained resources, policy changes and community collaboration.
