News outlets report on a study published in The Lancet showing a 40 percent reduction in premature deaths is possible over the next 20 years.

TIME: Early Deaths Could Fall By 40% in the Next 20 Years
“According to researchers writing in The Lancet, we’re doing a good job of reducing the number of premature deaths — those occurring in people under 70. And if current trends continue with some improvements, such early deaths should drop by 40 percent over the next two decades…” (Oaklander, 9/19).

VOA News: Renewed International Efforts Could Prevent Premature Adult Deaths
“…A paper by [University of Oxford epidemiologist Richard Peto] and 16 international co-authors found that other development goals — reducing maternal mortality and fighting AIDS, malaria, and other infectious diseases — cut premature death among adults by one-sixth [from 2000 to 2010]. Now, he said, if the world begins an intense effort to further eliminate preventable causes of death, including injuries, we could see a steeper decline…” (Berman, 9/19).