The Rankings

Pennsylvania

Get the full state report

Strengths:

• Low rate of uninsured population
• High rate of high school graduation
• Ready availability of primary care physicians

Challenges:

• High levels of air pollution
• Low per capita public health funding
• High prevalence of diabetes

Highlights:

• In the past year, diabetes increased from 9.0 percent to 10.3 percent of the population. Now more than 1.0 million Pennsylvania adults have diabetes.
• In the past year, the percentage of children in poverty increased from 14.5 percent to 16.4 percent of persons under age 18.
• In the past ten years, obesity increased from 21.2 percent to 29.2 percent of adults, with nearly 2.9 million obese adults in the state.
• While smoking decreased from 24.3 percent to 18.4 percent of adults in the last ten years, more than 1.8 million adults still smoke in Pennsylvania.

Health Disparities:

In Pennsylvania, obesity is more prevalent among non-Hispanic blacks at 39.4 percent than Hispanics at 34.5 percent and non- Hispanic whites at 27.7 percent. Diabetes also varies by race and ethnicity in the state; 15.7 percent of non-Hispanic blacks have diabetes compared to 8.9 percent of non-Hispanic whites and 6.6 percent of Hispanics.

State Health Department Web Site: www.health.state.pa.us