The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is out with a report examining health in the Gem State. It ranks Idaho’s 44 counties on a variety of factors centering on wellness. Ada, Blaine and Latah Counties are the three overall healthiest. The Treasure Valley’s Canyon County comes in at seventeen.
According to the report, the rankings are intended to help local governments understand what things effect healthy residents and how long people will live.
While the overall ranking takes into account how good people report feeling and how long they live, the foundation also provides a county-by-county ranking of health factors. These include considerations for diet and tobacco use along with other influences like access to health care and socio-economic status.
On the health factors front, Blaine and Ada counties rank one and two, respectively. Third is Latah County in the north, and, coming in at fourth and fifth are Valley and Madison Counties.
The county at the bottom of the list when it comes to health factors is Benewah – and last for overall health outcomes is Owyhee.
Citing the encompassing nature of health, the foundation includes statistics on children in poverty, homeownership rates and housing affordability. The report says twelve percent of Idaho households spend more than half their income on housing costs.
The report and associated data can be found here.
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