The greatest health strengths and challenges in North Dakota

The recently released “America’s Health Rankings 2022 Annual Report” uncovered several health strengths and challenges in North Dakota.


North Dakota is ranked 19th in the country for overall health – a decline from a ranking of 14 in 20191 – according to America’s Health Rankings 2022 Annual Report. Below is a summary of the positive and negative factors that contributed to this ranking.2

North Dakota health strengths

  • Low prevalence of frequent mental distress
  • Low percentage of household food insecurity
  • Low percentage of adults who avoided care due to cost
  • 36% increase in mental health providers from 165.4 to 225 per 100,000 population from 2017 to 2022
  • 29% decrease in smoking from 21.2% to 15% of adults between 2012 and 2021

North Dakota health challenges

  • High racial disparity in premature death rate
  • High prevalence of excessive drinking
  • High occupational fatality rate
  • 63% increase in drug deaths from 9 to 14.7 deaths per 100,000 population between 2017 and 2020

What this means for employers

Employers who do business or have employees living in the state of North Dakota may want to consider programs or benefits that can help support their employee population and guide them to better health decisions.

Learn more about the factors impacting the health of North Dakota

The real people behind these numbers are what make the work ahead so critically important. Despite the challenges ahead, I remain optimistic that the health system can rise to the moment to address long-standing disparities and improve the health and well-being of all Americans, for this generation and the next.

— Patricia L. Lewis, Chief Sustainability Officer at UnitedHealth Group

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