General Health
Santa Cruz County ranks 13th out of all California counties in the County Health Rankings for Health Outcomes.1 In Santa Cruz County, 89.6% of all adults have health insurance currently and 10.4% do not.2 However, only 67.4% of African Americans have health insurance compared to 91.4% of the White Population.2 The implementation of the Affordable Care Act/Covered California will likely lower the number of uninsured and future reports should tell us more about the impact on the community.
Lung Health
According to the California Health Interview Survey, 13.4% of Santa Cruz County residents are current smokers.2 The population with the highest smoking rates is American Indian/Alaskan Natives, 24% of whom smoke.2 This is followed by White people, 12.8% of whom smoke.2
Overall, lung disease (including lung cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, asthma, influenza, and pneumonia) accounts for more deaths than any other health condition, in California, ranked by three-year average, 18,501.7 people died of lung disease.3 More specifically, over a three year period, Santa Cruz County lost, on average, 175.4 people to lung disease.3
Lung Cancer
Santa Cruz County is ranked 6th in California with an age-adjusted death rate of 24.1 deaths per 100,000 people for lung cancer.3 Lung cancer is the 4th largest killer of California residents. The mortality rate from Lung Cancer in California is 30.9 per 100,000 population, and the trend has been going down steadily since the 1990s.4
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD, is the 12th leading cause of death in the State of California.3 In Santa Cruz County, COPD has a death rate of 24.4 deaths per 100,000 population, when age-adjusted, which is higher than the California death rate of 33.3.3 This ranks Santa Cruz County as 7th in the state, out of the 58 California Counties.3
Asthma
According to the California Health Interview Survey, 17.3% of Santa Cruz County residents have been diagnosed with asthma .2 Out of those people, 46.3% take medication daily to control their asthma.2 Also, 30.2% have had an asthma attack/episode in the past 12 months. In addition to that, 5.7% of people visited the emergency room or urgent care in the past 12 months for asthma.2
Tuberculosis
In 2017, Santa Cruz County had 6 cases of tuberculosis and was ranked 28th out of the 58 counties in California.5 The Asian/Pacific Islander population had the highest number of cases at 19.1 per 100,000 people. 15.6 per 100,000 of people with tuberculosis were born outside of the United States. 2.2 per 100,000 of people diagnosed with tuberculosis is the statistic for Santa Cruz County.5
Influenza/Pneumonia
Influenza and Pneumonia are the 11th leading cause of death in the State of California. In Santa Cruz County, the age-adjusted death rate of 9.5 deaths per 100,000 people.2 This rate is higher than the prior year’s death rate of 12.4 deaths per 100,000 people.6 This ranks Santa Cruz County as 10th out of California’s 58 counties.2
Bibliography
1. Country Health Rankings. (n.d.). Retrieved January 17, 2020, from https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/app/california/2019/rankings/outcomes/overall
2. California Health Interview Survey. (n.d.). Retrieved January 13, 2020, from http://ask.chis.ucla.edu/ask/SitePages/AskChisLogin.aspx?ReturnUrl=/AskCHIS/tools/_layouts/Authenticate.aspx?Source=%2FAskCHIS%2Ftools%2F%5Flayouts%2FAskChisTool%2Fhome%2Easpx&Source=/AskCHIS/tools/_layouts/AskChisTool/home.aspx#.
3. County Health Status Profiles 2018. (n.d.). Retrieved January 13, 2020, from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/CHSP-County%20Profiles%202018.pdf
4. County Health Status Profiles 2017. (n.d.). Retrieved January 31, 2020, from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPHDocumentLibrary/OHIRProfiles2017.pdf
5. California 2017 Provisional Tuberculosis Data Tables. (n.d.). Retrieved January 13, 2020, from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/TBCB-TB-Provisional-Tables-2017.pdf
6. County Health Status Profiles 2017. (n.d.). Retrieved January 31, 2020, from https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CHSI/CDPH%20Document%20Library/OHIRProfiles2017.pdf