Canada's Quality of Life Hub is currently in development. We need your help! If you have ideas or thoughts for what you'd like to see on the Hub, Statistics Canada would love to hear about it. Your input is invaluable as we continue to develop the Quality of Life Hub.
Health-adjusted life expectancy
Domain
Health
Subdomain
Healthy people
Indicator
Health-adjusted life expectancy

Description - Health-adjusted life expectancy data snapshot
69.7 number of years in good health an individual is expected to live given current morbidity and mortality conditions.
2000 to 2002 | 2005 to 2007 | 2010 to 2012 | 2015 to 2017 | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Health-adjusted life expectancy | 68.5 | 69.4 | 70.4 | 69.7 |
Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Vital Statistics - Death Database.
Definition
Number of years in good health an individual is expected to live given current morbidity and mortality conditions.
Measurement
Health adjusted life expectancy (HALE) is a summary indicator that incorporates information on mortality (such as life expectancy) and health status (such as morbidity) into a single estimate that can be considered not only a measure of quantity of life but also a measure of quality of life. Estimates of HALE represent the number of years in good health that could be expected based on the average experience in a population if current patterns of mortality and health status persisted.
HALE combines the Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI3) as a measure of health status with estimates of life expectancy. HUI3 is a summary index of health-related quality of life based on eight attributes of self-reported health status: vision, hearing, speech, ambulation, dexterity, emotion, cognition, and pain. The value of HUI3 can range from -0.36 (state worse than death; death represented by 0) to 1.00 (best possible health state).
This indicator draws on life expectancy data from the Canadian Vital Statistics – Birth Database (CVSB) and the Canadian Vital Statistics Death Database (CVSD), HUI scores from the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) and the National Population Health Survey (NPHS) (for the institutionalized population), and the Census of Population for population counts.
Data sources
This indicator is measured through multiple Statistics Canada surveys. Estimates can vary between data sources due to differences in reference periods, targeted or sampled populations, data collection and other methodology.
Data visualizations
- Selected indicators of quality of life in Canada (Statistics Canada – Data Visualization Products)
Data analysis
- Health of Canadians – Health outcomes (Health of Canadians, September 13, 2023)
- Health-adjusted life expectancy in Canada (Health Reports, April 18, 2018)
Frameworks
This indicator aligns with the following framework:
- Gender Results Framework (GRF)
- Poverty reduction, health and well-being
- GFR Indicator 5.5.2 – Health-adjusted life expectancy at birth
- Poverty reduction, health and well-being
- Date modified: