2012 County Health Rankings Highlight Health Differences between California Counties and Need for Public Health Action

OAKLAND, Calif., April 3, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Where we live impacts our health, and while medical care is important, much of what affects health occurs outside of medical care settings. This is the message of the 2012 County Health Rankings, released today by the Wisconsin Population Health Institute in collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The project assigned a ranking to all but two of the 58 counties in California based on health outcomes and the various economic, social, behavioral and environmental factors that influence health.

According to results, residents of Marin, Santa Clara and San Benito have the best health outcomes, while Siskiyou, Del Norte and Trinity are among the lowest. For the various health factors that can impact these outcomes, the strongest rates were seen in Marin, Placer and San Mateo counties, while Tulare, Kern and Yuba counties fell towards the bottom.

"The Rankings show that residents in Trinity County are almost three times as likely to die prematurely than those living in Marin County," said Mary Pittman, DrPH, president and CEO of the Public Health Institute (PHI), which is helping to promote the Rankings in California. "By highlighting these health disparities across California counties, the Rankings inform a larger and critical discussion about what can be done to reduce them."

The Rankings offer a picture of the health status of nearly every county in all 50 states. In California, only Sierra and Alpine counties were not included due to data limitations. Using a well-researched model for measuring population health status, each county is given two rankings. The first ranking, health outcomes, is based on summary data for the average length of life and quality of life among county residents.

A second ranking is provided for health factors, which include health behaviors (e.g., smoking, diet and exercise), quality of and access to clinical care, socioeconomic factors, and the physical environment. According to developers of the Rankings model, health outcomes point to current health status while health factors provide an indicator of the future health of a county's population.

Similar to last year, several counties in the Bay Area including Marin, Santa Clara and San Mateo ranked in the top five healthiest counties in the state for both health outcomes and health factors. Other high ranking counties include Placer County (#4 for health outcomes and #2 for health factors), San Benito County (#3 for health outcomes) and El Dorado County (#5 for health factors). 

Among the lowest ranking counties, those in the North Coast and Sierra Cascade regions (Lake, Siskiyou, Del Norte, and Trinity counties) have some of the poorest health outcomes, while counties in Gold Country (San Joaquin and Yuba) and the Central Valley (Tulare and Kern) had the lowest health factor rankings. For the full California Rankings report, visit: www.countyhealthrankings.org.

The Rankings are intended to stimulate conversation among California residents, health leaders and policy makers on the action steps they can take to improve the health of their communities. The data provide a "call to action" to make strategic investments in policies and programs that will improve the health of all Californians, no matter where they live.

In addition to supplying the Rankings, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awards Roadmaps to Health grants to counties to implement programs that improve the economic and social factors underlying a county's health ranking. The deadline for this year's funding is May 2 and an informational webinar will be held on April 10. For more information, visit: www.countyhealthrankings.org/roadmaps.

Last year three California counties received Roadmaps grants: Alameda County was funded to increase consumer-focused banking services, Shasta County executed a college preparedness campaign, and Contra Costa County implemented a reintegration program for former inmates. The Roadmaps to Health website offers an "Action Center" with free tools and resources to help communities take meaningful action towards health improvement.

PHI will hold a webinar to further discuss how California counties can use the Rankings to inform effective public health action and to showcase last year's California Roadmaps grantees. More information will be available in the coming weeks. Check www.dialogue4health.org for updates.

For more information about the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: www.rwjf.org

For more information about the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute: http://uwphi.pophealth.wisc.edu.

About the Public Health Institute
The Public Health Institute, an independent nonprofit organization, is dedicated to promoting health, well-being and quality of life for people throughout California, across the nation and around the world. PHI's primary methods for achieving these goals include: sharing evidence developed through quality research and evaluation; providing training and technical assistance; and promoting successful prevention strategies to policymakers, communities and individuals. For more information, go to: www.phi.org

SOURCE Public Health Institute