The greatest health strengths and challenges in Oregon
The recently released “America’s Health Rankings 2022 Annual Report” uncovered several health strengths and challenges in Oregon.
Oregon is ranked 18th in the country for overall health – an improvement from a ranking of 22 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
Oregon health strengths
- Low premature death rate
- Low prevalence of obesity
- Low prevalence of physical inactivity
- 21% decrease in smoking from 15.6% to 12.4% of adults between 2018 and 2021
Oregon health challenges
- High prevalence of frequent mental distress
- Low prevalence of having a dedicated health care provider
- High levels of air pollution
- 29% increase in drug deaths from 14.4 to 18.6 deaths per 100,000 population between 2019 and 2020
- 17% decrease in fourth grade reading proficiency from 33.8% to 28% of fourth grade public school students between 2019 and 2022
What this means for employers
Employers who do business or have employees living in the state of Oregon 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 Oregon.
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.
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