The Rankings

Massachusetts

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Strengths:

• Low rate of uninsured population
• Low prevalence of smoking
• Lower prevalence of obesity than most other states
• Ready availability of primary care physicians

Challenges:

• High prevalence of binge drinking
• High rate of preventable hospitalizations

Highlights:

• In the past year, the percentage of children in poverty decreased from 16.7 percent to 12.6 percent of persons under age 18.
• In the past ten years, diabetes increased from 5.8 percent to 7.4 percent of the adult population. There are now 380,000 adults with diabetes in the state.
• In the past ten years, obesity increased from 16.8 percent to 23.6 percent of adults, with more than 1.2 million people now obese.
• In the past five years, smoking decreased from 18.1 percent to 14.1 percent of adults. However, 723,000 adults still smoke.

Health Disparities:

In Massachusetts, obesity is more prevalent among non-Hispanic blacks at 30.5 percent than non-Hispanic whites at 21.8 percent. Diabetes also varies by race and ethnicity in the state; 11.1 percent of non-Hispanic blacks have diabetes compared to 7.1 percent of non- Hispanic whites and 9.3 percent Hispanics.

State Health Department Web Site: www.mass.gov/dph