Oconto County ranks among the less healthy counties in the state, according to the annual County Health Rankings released by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
The County Health Rankings rank the overall health of nearly every county in all 50 states. The rankings allow counties to see how well they are doing on 29 factors that influence health, including smoking, high school graduation rates, employment, physical inactivity and access to healthy foods.
Oconto County ranks in the bottom half for health outcomes, with a rating of 57 out of 72 counties. In 2013, it ranked 46th in this area, which measures length and quality of life by determining the number of poor physical or mental health days and the occurrence of premature death and low birth weight.
The county ranks in the bottom half of Wisconsin counties for health behaviors (43), which measure obesity, smoking, physical inactivity, excessive drinking, teen births, alcohol-impaired driving deaths, food environment index, sexually transmitted disease and access to exercise opportunities. Last year, Oconto County ranked 38th.
It ranks even lower in clinical care (51), which measures the number of uninsured individuals, diabetic and mammography screening, preventable hospital stays and the ratio of people to primary care physicians (1,233:1), mental health providers (1,050:1) and dentists (1,703:1). The 2013 ranking, which didn’t measure ratio of mental health providers, was 56th.
On the positive side, Oconto County ranks near the middle for social and economic factors at 38, almost identical to the 37 ranking in 2013.
It also ranks in the top half for physical environment, with a 24, down significantly from the 2013 ranking of 9, but the categories rated were not identical year-to-year.
According to the 2014 rankings, the five healthiest counties in Wisconsin, starting with the most healthy, are Ozaukee, Kewaunee, Portage, Taylor and Door. The five counties in the poorest health, starting with the least healthy, are Menominee, Milwaukee, Adams, Marquette and Forest.
Nationally, this year’s rankings show that people living in the least healthy counties are twice as likely to have shorter lives as people living in the healthiest counties. Unhealthy counties also have twice as many children living in poverty and twice as many teen births as the healthiest counties.
The County Health Rankings are part of the County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. The program includes the Roadmaps to Health Action Center, which provides local leaders with tools, step-by-step guides and stories to help communities identify and implement solutions that make it easier for people to live healthy lives.
“The County Health Rankings show us how health is influenced by our everyday surroundings—where we live, learn, work, and play,” said Dr. Bridget Catlin, director of the County Health Rankings & Roadmaps. “The County Health Rankings often provide the spark for businesses, community planners, policymakers, public health, parents and others to work together for better health.”
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