Strengths:

• Few poor mental & physical health days
• Low percentage of children in poverty
• Low violent crime rate

 

Challenges:

• High geographic disparity within the state
• High prevalence of obesity & diabetes
• Low immunization coverage

 

Highlights:

• In the past five years, air pollution decreased 23 percent from 12.6 to 9.7 micrograms of fine particulate per cubic meter.
• In the past ten years, the rate of uninsured population increased 33 percent from 10.3 percent to 13.7 percent of the adult population.
• In the past year, the percentage of children in poverty increased from 12.3 percent to 14.7 percent of persons under age 18. It was at 7.9 percent in 2002.
• The rate of preventable hospitalizations decreased in the past five years, from 70.2 to 58.3 discharges per 1,000 Medicare enrollees.
• Virginia has higher rates of obesity and diabetes compared to most other states at 29.2 percent and 10.4 percent of the adult population, respectively. There are more than 1.8 million obese adults and almost 650,000 adults with diabetes in the state.

 

Disparities:

• In Virginia, obesity is more prevalent among non-Hispanic blacks at 38.1 percent than non-Hispanic whites at 25.1 percent and Hispanics at 24.1 percent; smoking is more prevalent among Hispanics at 27.4 percent than non-Hispanic blacks at 18.0 percent and non-Hispanic whites at 17.9 percent; and sedentary lifestyle is more prevalent among non-Hispanic blacks at 30.8 percent than non-Hispanic whites at 20.7 percent.

 

State Health Department Web Site: www.vdh.state.va.us