I thought your quote regarding England and Wales might be from Sen's
powerful article in Scientific American, The Economics of Life and
Death, May 1993, but I couldn't find it there. The latter article is
highly recommended. It points out for example that African American men
above the age of 40 in Harlem, N.Y.C. have lower survival rates than men
from Bangladesh. Also see Sen's Population: Delusion and Reality (New
York Review of Books, Sept. 22, 1994).