Death rate in the U.S. and Soviet Union 1970-1989
In select years between 1970 and 1989, the Soviet Union's death rate was often significantly higher than that of the United States, apart from 1970 where the U.S.' rate was higher. The reason for this reversal has been attributed to a number of factors, most notably the improvements in Soviet data collection, which gave more accurate records as the years progressed, as well as the deterioration of the Soviet Union's economic situation in the 1970s and 1980s, which led to declining living standards, rising levels of alcoholism and substance abuse, and a strain on the USSR's healthcare infrastructure.