San Benito County is the second healthiest county in
California
– trailing only Marin – according to a recently-released project
by the University of Wisconsin Population Institute and the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation.
San Benito County is the second healthiest county in California – trailing only Marin – according to a recently-released project by the University of Wisconsin Population Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Researchers used the latest data available for more than 3,000 counties around the country to measure the overall health of each county based on multiple factors that influence health, such as personal behavior, social and economic status and the environment.
“Where we live, learn, work and play affect our health, and we need to use the information from the rankings to shine a spotlight on where we need to improve so we can take action to address our problems,” said Patrick Remington, director of the county health rankings project.
San Benito had the second-lowest morbidity rate in the state, which measures the physical and mental health of residents over the past 30 days along with low birth weight rates among babies. The county also had the sixth-lowest premature death rate, measured by people dying before the age of 75.
The county was ranked in the top 10 for healthy behaviors, with just 5 percent of adults reporting that they smoke, compared to the 15 percent average in California. Adult obesity and the motor vehicle crash death rates locally were higher than the state average, though the rate of sexually transmitted infections – specifically Chlamydia – was significantly lower than the state rate, according to the report.
San Benito did not fare as well in the clinical care rankings, coming in 44th in the state. Residents had more preventable hospital stays and lower mammography screening rates than the state average, though the county has a lower percentage of uninsured adults – 21 percent – than the state average of 24 percent. The county’s ratio of population to primary care providers was nearly twice as high as the state average, with one such provider for every 1,661 residents, compared to one per 847 residents statewide.
“It’s hard to lead a healthy life if you don’t live in a healthy community,” said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and chief executive officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. “We hope that policy-makers, businesses, educators, public health departments and community residents will use the rankings to develop solutions to help people live healthier lives.”
When evaluating social and economic factors, researchers ranked San Benito 32nd in the state. The four-year high school graduation rate of 60 percent locally trailed the 71 percent state rate and 45 percent of residents age 25-44 reported attending college, compared to the 59 percent statewide rate.
The continued high unemployment rate in the county factored into the middling ranking in this category, though San Benito’s rate of single-parent households – 21 percent – was 9 percent lower than the state average and the violent crime rate per 100,000 residents (403) was 117 points lower than the California average.
The study ranked the county as No. 30 for physical environment factors, though it noted that the local air quality is among the best in the state. Half of local residents had access to healthy foods either through grocery stores, produce stands or farmers’ markets, compared to 79 percent statewide. San Benito also had a higher rate of recreational facilities per 100,000 people than the state average.
The county health rankings are available online at www.countyhealthrankings.org.
