Home > Del Norte County Summary

General Health

Del Norte is ranked 39th in overall health outcomes and 19th in quality of life.1 Eight percent of county residents are uninsured 2 and all of Del Norte County is considered a Medically Underserved Area due to the geographic spread of the population and limited health resources.3 Reports from the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps rank Del Norte 49th out of 57 counties in California in premature death.4

Lung Health

The second biggest killer of Del Norte County residents is lung disease.5 The age-adjusted death rate for lung disease (including lung cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, asthma, influenza, and pneumonia) is 120.9/100,000 population, significantly higher than the California rate of 90.2/100,000.6, 7 Fifteen percent of adults in Del Norte County report smoking more than 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and are currently smokers.8 This is four percent higher than the state of California.9 Smoking rates increase as income decreases in Del Norte County. Low-income adults are significantly more likely to smoke cigarettes daily compared to non-low income adults.10

Lung Cancer

Del Norte County is ranked as 49th out of 58 California counties in terms of lung cancer deaths. 11 The county has higher age adjusted death rate compared to the other counties, at 39.0 deaths/100,000 people.12 The rate of this is decreasing from 2014, and lower than the previous year.13 In Del Norte and Humboldt counties, the highest risk of lung cancer exists within the non-Hispanic White population, whereas the risk of lung cancer for males and females is significantly lower in Asian and Pacific Islander population.14 For females, specifically, the highest rates of lung cancer exist in Hispanic populations.15

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Chronic lower respiratory disease is the second leading cause of death among Del Norte County residents, with an age adjusted death rate of 73.7/100,000 people, which ranks 57th out of 58 counties.16 This is nearly double the rate of the state of California, 32.1/100,000.17 The average number of deaths caused by chronic lower respiratory disease over the 2014-2016 three-year period in Del Norte County is 25.7 deaths.18

Asthma

Due to the poor surveillance and records for Del Norte County, specific rates of asthma hospitalizations and diagnoses have not been determined.19 Information for similar, neighboring counties is often utilized to make estimates for Del Norte County. Using data collected from Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties, the estimated rate of hospitalizations for that region is 5.2 hospitalizations/10,000 children.20

Tuberculosis

The last time a case of tuberculosis was identified in Del Norte County was 2009.21 Because Del Norte County has only had one case since 2009, information regarding demographics of that case is not available due to confidentiality laws.22

Influenza and Pneumonia

Del Norte County is ranked 57th out of 58 California counties in terms of deaths due to influenza and pneumonia.23 The age-adjusted death rate for Del Norte County is 23.4 deaths/100,000 people, which is higher than the statewide rate of 15.2/100,000 people.24

Sources

1. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (2018). Del Norte County Snapshot. Retrieved 2018 August from County Health Rankings: http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/california/2018/rankings/del-norte/county/outcomes/overall/snapshot

2. Ibid.

3. Data.HRSA.gov. (2018). Retrieved 2018 August from https://data.hrsa.gov/

4. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (2018). Del Norte County Snapshot. Retrieved 2018 September from County Health Rankings: http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/california/2018/rankings/del-norte/county/outcomes/1/snapshot

5. California Department of Public Health. (2018). County Individual Data Sheets 2018. Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/CHSP-DELNORTE.pdf

6. Ibid.

7. California Department of Public Health. (2018). County Asthma Profiles, Del Norte 2018. Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CCDPHP/DEODC/EHIB/CPE/CDPH%20Document%20Library/County%20profiles/DelNorte2016profile.pdf

8. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. (2018). Del Norte County Snapshot. Retrieved 2018 September from County Health Rankings: http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/california/2018/rankings/del-norte/county/outcomes/1/snapshot

9. Ibid.

10. Truth Initiative Inspiring Tobacco-Free Lives. (2018). Socioeconomic Status 2017. Retrieved 2018 September from https://truthinitiative.org/news/smoking-and-low-income-communities

11. California Department of Public Health. (2018). County Health Status Profiles2017. Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/OHIRProfiles2017.pdf

12. Ibid.

13. Ibid.

14. California Cancer Registry. (2018). Status Update of Cancer Incidence, Mortality, and Health Behaviors by Counties, December 2015. Retrieved 2018 September from http://ccr.ca.gov/pdf/factsheets/Counties_2015/Del_Norte_Humboldt_2015.pdf

15. Ibid.

16. California Department of Public Health. (2018). County Individual Data Sheets 2018. Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/CHSP-DELNORTE.pdf

17. Ibid.

18. Ibid.

19. California Department of Public Health. (2018). Asthma Hospitalizations and Emergency Department Visits (2016). Retrieved 2018 September from California Department of Public Health: http://www.cehtp.org/page/asthma/results

20. Kids Data. (2018). Asthma Summary. Retrieved 2018 September from kidsdata.org: https://www.kidsdata.org/topic/239/asthma-hospitalizations/Trend#fmt=2378&loc=1661&tf=1,79&ch=788,789,790,974&pdist=7

21. California Department of Public Health. (2018). TBCB State Report (2014). California Department of Public Health. . Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/TBCB_Report_2014.pdf

22. Ibid.

23. California Department of Public Health. (2018). County Health Status Profiles2017. Retrieved 2018 September from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/OHIRProfiles2017.pdf

24. Ibid.