Strengths:

• Low prevalence of low birthweight
• Low rate of uninsured population
• Low violent crime rate

 

Challenges:

• High prevalence of obesity
• High prevalence of smoking
• High rate of cancer deaths

 

Highlights:

• In the past five years, infant mortality decreased from 6.3 to 5.6 deaths per 1,000 live births.
• In the past ten years, the percentage of children in poverty increased from 11.8 percent to 17.7 percent of persons under age 18.
• In the past ten years, the rate of preventable hospitalizations decreased from 75.9 to 59.3 discharges per 1,000 Medicare enrollees.
• In the past year, public health funding decreased from $86 to $83 per person.
• Maine ranks higher for determinants than for outcomes, indicating that overall healthiness may improve over time.
• Almost 250,000 adults smoke in Maine and almost 300,000 adults are obese.

 

Disparities:

• In Maine obesity is more prevalent among non-Hispanics whites at 27.0 percent than Hispanics at 20.9 percent; sedentary lifestyle is more prevalent among non-Hispanic whites at 21.8 percent than Hispanics at 16.7 percent; and smoking is more prevalent among Hispanics at 25.1 percent than non-Hispanic whites at 17.4 percent.

 

State Health Department Web Site: www.maine.gov/dhhs