Published December 14, 2016
Notable long-term improvements in reducing the prevalence of smoking, rate of preventable hospitalizations among Medicare beneficiaries, and percentage of uninsured population
Prevalence of obesity among adult population remains high, and rising rates of cardiovascular and drug deaths signal serious health challenges
Hawaii ranks as nation’s healthiest state for the fifth straight year
The nation’s health is seeing concerning upticks in key health indicators that threaten to offset years of public health successes, according to the key findings in United Health Foundation’s 27th America’s Health Rankings Annual Report®.
Through an analysis of 34 measures of behaviors, community and environment, policies and clinical care data, America’s Health Rankings Annual Report provides a holistic view of the nation’s health.
The report finds that the United States has made notable long-term improvements across key health indicators, including:
While Americans have made substantial health gains in key areas, the report highlights serious challenges for the country that are eroding these hard-won gains, such as:
“We have made important strides across the country against public health challenges; however, we are at a crossroads between a healthier future as a nation and a future in which troubling public health measurements become increasingly common,” said Reed Tuckson, M.D., external senior medical adviser to United Health Foundation. “Of particular concern is the first-time rise in cardiovascular deaths, despite all the medical advances in this area. This data provides a roadmap for states, local communities and the public health sector to work together to get ahead of the challenges coming.”
America’s Health Rankings Annual Report is the longest-running annual assessment of the nation’s health on a state-by-state basis. For 27 years, the report has analyzed a comprehensive set of behaviors, community and environmental conditions, policies, clinical care and outcomes data to provide a holistic view of the health of the nation.
The longevity of the report and wealth of credible data available for analysis provide a unique opportunity to track both short- and long-term successes and identify current and emerging challenges to the nation’s health.
United Health Foundation has recently expanded its reporting series to include a number of spotlight reports focused on important markers of the nation’s health, including prevention and the impacts of unhealthy behaviors, and population reports on the health of seniors, of women and children and of those who have served. For more information, visit www.americashealthrankings.org.