Health Rankings for Albemarle County

Here at Gayle Harvey Real Estate, we care about your health. Simply by virtue of being on this site, you probably know that we sell property in central Virginia. This is the first installment in a county-by-county health ranking series. Today we look at health statistics for Albemarle County.

Albemarle County is ranked 4th overall for healthiest counties in Virginia:

  • Years of potential life lost before age 75/100,000 people: 3,900 (compared to a state average of 6,100, and 5,200 among the “Top U.S. Performers*” nationwide.

Albemarle County is ranked 11th overall for quality of life:

  • 12% of people report having poor/fair health, consistent with the average percentage of Top U.S. Performers (12%) and slightly lower than the state Average of 17%.
  • 3 days was the average number of physically unhealthy days and the average number of mentally unhealthy days per month, as reported. This is slightly lower than the state averages (3.5 and 3.3, respectively) and only slightly higher than the national average for Top U.S. Performers (2.9 and 2.8, respectively)
  • 7% of live births were low birthweight (<2,500 grams, <5.51 lbs) compared with 6% for the Top U.S. Performers and 8% for the state average

Albemarle County is ranked 10th overall for health factors:

  • 15% of adults identify as regular smokers, compared to 14% for the Top U.S. Performers and 20% for the rest of the state
  • 23% of adults are considered obese (body mass index of 30 or more), compared to 25% for the Top U.S. Performers and 27% for the rest of the state
  • The food environment index is a confluence of factors that influence good eating habits, on a 0 (worst) to 10 (best) scale. Albemarle has a food environment index of 8.6, slightly higher than Virginia’s average and the average of Top U.S. Performers, both 8.3.
  • 20% of adults over 20-years old report not engaging in physical activity, a percentage consistent with the national percentage of Top U.S. Performers (20%) and slightly lower than the state percentage (22%).
  • 74% of the population has access to adequate exercise opportunities, compared to 91% among Top U.S Performers and 81% for the state of Virginia.
  • 18% of adults report heavy drinking or binge drinking, compared to 12% for the Top U.S. Performers and 17% for the rest of the state.
  • 39% of driving deaths in Albemarle involved alcohol, compared to 14% for the Top U.S. Performers and 31% for the state overall.
  • Albemarle County reported 212.5 sexually-transmitted infections per 100,000 people, compared to 134.1 in 100,000 for Top U.S. Performers and 407 in 100,000 for the state of Virginia.
  • Albemarle County reported 11 teen births per 1,000 teenage females (ages 15-19), compared to 19 for the Top U.S. Performers and 27 for the state overall.

Albemarle County is ranked 4th overall for clinical care in the state:

  • 13% of the population under 65 is without health insurance, compared to 11% for the Top U.S. Performers and 14% for the state of Virginia. It should be noted that this percentage has been steadily decreasing across recent years in Albemarle County.
  • The ratio of population to primary care physicians in Albemarle County is 610:1, compared to 1,040:1 for the Top U.S. Performers and 1,330:1 for the state of Virginia
  • The ratio of population to dentists in Albemarle county is 1,070:1, compared to 1,340:1 for the Top U.S. Performers and 1,570:1 for the state of Virginia
  • The ratio of population to mental health providers is 980:1 in Albemarle County, compared to 370:1 in the Top U.S. Performing Counties and 680:1 for the state of Virginia overall.
  • There were 37 preventable hospital stays in Albemarle County, compared to an average of 38 for the Top U.S. Performers and 49 for the state overall.
  • 88% of Medicare enrollees ages 65-75 received diabetic monitoring, compared to 90% for the Top U.S. Performers and 87% for the state of Virginia.
  • 72% of female Medicare enrollees ages 67-69 received mammography screening, compared to 71% for the Top U.S. Performers and 63% for the state overall.