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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The latest version of an annual report that ranks counties on health has rated Lake the last among California’s counties.
The ninth annual County Health Rankings, released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, said the five healthiest counties in California, starting with most healthy, are Marin County, followed by San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, Placer County and Napa County.
The five counties in the poorest health, starting with least healthy, are Lake County, Siskiyou County, Plumas County, Trinity County and Modoc County, the report said.
The rankings are available at www.countyhealthrankings.org.
The study’s authors said that the local-level data make it clear that good health is influenced by many factors beyond medical care including housing, education and jobs, and that meaningful gaps in health persist not only by place, but also by race and ethnicity.
This newest analysis, the authors said, also shows that lack of opportunity – such as education, jobs and affordable housing – disproportionately affects people of color across the nation and within California.
A key driver of health cited in the report is children in poverty. The study’s authors said children in poverty are less likely to have access to well-resourced and quality schools, and have fewer chances to be prepared for living wage jobs.
The California State Report reveals that in California, 20 percent of children live in poverty, which is the same as the U.S. rate. Among racial and ethnic groups in California, rates of children in poverty range from 11 percent to 39 percent with American Indian/Alaskan Native children faring the worst and White children faring the best, the report said.
The report found that 30 percent of the children in Lake County live in poverty.
Lake also gets low rankings for categories including length of life due to its high incidence of premature death, a rate of injury deaths that is about three times the state average, and a variety of health behaviors, including an adult smoking rate of 15 percent, excessive drinking of 17 percent, alcohol-impaired deaths of 40 percent and a 26-percent adult obesity rate, despite 75 percent of the population having access to exercise opportunities. All of those factors are above the state average.
Teen births are above the state average but sexually transmitted disease cases are fewer than the California average overall, the report found.
The report found that Lake County ranks No. 31 statewide for its physical environment, with a low air pollution level that puts it among the best in the nation.
Lake County has a 10-percent uninsured rate, with primary care physicians and dentists in short supply: the physician to patient ratio is 1,960 to one, while dentists are 2,210 to one. Mental health providers are 300 to one, which is a better ratio that the state and makes Lake County a top performer nationwide.
Preventable hospital stays are above the state average, as is the incidence of mammography screening, which is 49 percent versus 60 percent statewide, Diabetes monitoring, at 82 percent, ties the state average.
Lake County has an 86-percent high school graduation rate compared to the statewide rate of 82 percent, with a 6.6-percent unemployment rate for 2017 compared to California’s overall 5.4 percent. Its income inequality rate, 5.2, is the same as the state’s.
In recent years, Lake has hovered near the bottom of the rankings, but this year was designated No. 57. Alpine County is not ranked.
Lake’s neighboring counties showed a mix of results: Colusa, No. 29; Glenn, No. 42; Mendocino, No. 44; Napa, No. 5; Sonoma, No. 7; and Yolo, No. 20.
The report does not make clear if the drop in Lake’s ranking has anything to do with the impacts of wildland fires over the past several years.
However, one factor that has been impacted by the fires is severe housing problems, with 27 percent of Lake County having that challenge. California overall ranks higher in that respect (28 percent).
Dr. Sara Goldgraben – who became Lake County’s new health officer two months ago, succeeding Dr. Karen Tait who retired late last year – reviewed these new rankings.
“Lake County has been through extreme challenges from 2015 to 2017 with wildfires and floods. This contributes to many things such as loss of housing where people have now been displaced and left the county permanently. Loss of jobs creates economic challenges, and a population which has to restart from scratch,” she said.
“We need to support the efforts in progress to rebuild and get the housing to be secure and safe. We recently obtained a transportation grant which will increase access to care. Adventist Health has a Project Restoration program, which provides intensive case management to help people with complex social and health issues,” she added. “This more effectively helps people to get access to the resources that they need. People need the social supports to get back on their feet.”
Goldgraben also addressed the challenges the study found that Lake County has regarding its health outcomes. “We need to improve our trends in obesity, sexually transmitted diseases, mammography screening, and children in poverty. Partnering with schools and healthcare providers to educate would be extremely valuable. Prevention is really the key.”
She also offered solutions. “Here is what our residents can do to improve their health outcomes: Eat a healthy diet with fruits and vegetables, practice safe sex, be involved in your health care, limit alcohol and do not smoke.”
Goldgraben said a newly created deputy health officer position is allowing the county to expand the Maternal Child and Adolescent Health program, which is developing a standardized home visitation program which will bring education and resources to the community.
“These are complex issues and as a public health government agency we need the involvement of the entire community to help with solutions and come up with different strategies,” Goldgraben said.
She added, “Being a small rural county can have its challenges as we don’t have many resources and staff. However, being a small county has its benefits as well. We are easily able to work together and engage with community members, healthcare facilities, including our tribal partners. We need them all!”
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