New Report Shows County-by-County Health Ranking

(Feb. 17) -- For the first time, national health experts have teamed up to offer county-by-county health rankings designed to give residents, lawmakers and community leaders a new tool to improve their locality's well-being.

The health report cards for the nation's 3,016 counties, announced this morning in Washington, evaluate rates of disease and life span as well as a myriad of other factors, including tobacco use, obesity, access to fast food, air quality and even unemployment and income. Results are available at the County Health Rankings Web site.

Researchers used information compiled between 2000 and 2008, the most recent available. The massive undertaking was inspired by a 2006 initiative by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, where experts ranked the 72 counties in their state. That caught the eye of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President and CEO Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, and the groups teamed up to take on the country.

"These rankings tell us that health is about more than just health care. Health happens in our community," Lavizzo-Mourey said. "Action starts with information and awareness."

But the researchers caution that information is only part of the equation. They want to harness social media for people to take action toward better health, county by county. Their Web site will enable inter-county chat, links to helpful resources within each county and the ability to gauge progress over time.

And a little competition never hurt. "Each county will be able to compare how they stack up, relative to other counties," Lavizzo-Mourey said. "What is that county doing that works better, or doesn't work?"

The report doesn't cross state borders to rank counties, because states differ slightly in how they compile relevant data. That's why researchers want people to log on and compare their own county to others within their state. Online, each state is illustrated to show the five healthiest and least healthy counties.

Americans also have another resource to evaluate their locality, one that does touch on a state-by-state comparison: the annual America's Health Rankings, which rank all 50 states. Last year, Vermont topped the list, and Mississippi came up last.

Among the county-by-county trends, the research team noted that healthier areas tended to be urban or suburban. The 50 least-healthy counties in the country had rates of childhood poverty three times higher than the healthiest, along with 60 percent higher rates of smoking. Only 33 percent of less-healthy county residents had ready access to a grocery store, compared with 47 percent in healthier counties.

The country's healthiest counties also tended to have higher average incomes.

"These are only snapshots," said Patrick Remington, associate dean for public health at the University of Wisconsin. He emphasized that it's up to local health officials and county residents to take the information and apply it to their community. "It's up to whoever can address these health problems," he said.

Remington and Lavizzo-Mourey will be using social networking to address additional questions. They'll be on Twitter from 2 to 3 p.m. EST today.