Again! Los Alamos County, New Mexico ranks number 1 as America’s healthiest community
The “Healthiest Communities” rankings are evaluated for approximately 3,000 communities nationwide.
Health-related metrics are based on analysis in 10 categories, such as Education, Population Health, Infrastructure and Environment
The following written content from Tim Smart
For the third year in a row, New Mexico, has ranked No. 1 in U.S. News list of the Healthiest Communities in the U.S.
The New Mexico community had a well-educated, largely affluent population that enjoyed good access to health care. The large presence of one of the country’s 17 national laboratories provided the community with an appreciation of the values of scientific research. And the residents partook of the natural environment by hiking in the nearby canyons and mountains.
These types of characteristics have helped Los Alamos County place No. 1 in U.S. News’ annual ranking of America’s Healthiest Communities for the third time in a row. For 2022, the Healthiest Communities analysis assessed nearly 3,000 counties and county equivalents across 89 metrics in 10 categories that shape and show a community’s health and well-being, ranging from the economy and public safety to infrastructure, food and nutrition, and community vitality. Across the 10 categories, Los Alamos performed its best in housing, infrastructure and population health.
Yet like many communities across the nation, Los Alamos did not escape the effects of COVID-19, both economically and in terms of public health. And now, with subvariants of the virus spreading, the county is enduring the same sense of fatigue, deja vu and desire to put the pandemic behind it as the rest of the country.
“People here, just like everywhere, are tired,” says Cyndi Wells, owner of the Los Alamos pet supply store Pet Pangaea.
As the pandemic progressed, officials marshaled resources to keep the community up and running as best as possible, holding more than two dozen vaccine clinics, including mass efforts at the local high school gym. State and local officials ramped up testing, going from less than 100 tests a day to more than 1,000 in a matter of weeks.
Overall, the percentage of Los Alamos County residents considered fully vaccinated stood at approximately 85% as of mid-June – a mark second in the state behind McKinley County to the west, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Data on the state’s vaccine dashboard lists an even higher rate at roughly 96%.
The local response to the first booster shots also was “pretty good,” though “we’ve definitely plateaued,” says Linda Matteson, deputy county manager. The county’s rate of fully vaccinated people who’d received a first booster or additional vaccine dose stood at 65% as of June 14 – well above the national mark of 47% and among the top 2% of county rates in the country, if not that far removed from the 60% threshold Los Alamos hit at the end of January.
Still, coronavirus cases have ticked up again in the county recently, with a seven-day average of 28 cases per day as of June 6. That average was down to 16 by June 10, according to data posted by the New Mexico Department of Health, but was well above the single-digit averages seen in the county only about a month earlier.
And businesses that suffered lockdowns, staff shortages and supply chain disruptions in the early days of the pandemic in 2020 are still seeing some of the same issues more than two years later.
“I think people are surprised” that the virus is still a threat and that the economic damage it caused has left long-lasting marks, Wells says. “I didn’t anticipate there would be issues this far out.”
For Wells, finding the supplies she needs remains a challenge: She gets pet food and supply orders that are only 30% to 40% filled. Her business volumes are comparable to 2021 levels, though with a caveat: “It appears that our sales have gone up,” she says, “but with inflation, not really.” Read more from Usnews
2022 healthiest list
- Los Alamos County, New Mexico
- Falls Church, Virginia
- Douglas County, Colorado
- Morgan County, Utah
- Carver County, Minnesota
- Sioux County, Iowa
- Ozaukee County, Wisconsin
- Hamilton County, Indiana
- Broomfield County, Colorado
- Delaware County, Ohio
The healthiest communities in America 2021
The following written content from Chelsea Cirruzzo from an earlier post
The annual Healthiest Communities rankings launch includes various data including COVID-19.
U.S. News & World Report on Tuesday released the 2021 Healthiest Communities rankings, analyzing health and well-being in thousands of counties and county equivalents across the country.
For the second year in a row, Los Alamos County, New Mexico, is ranked No. 1, marking it as the healthiest community in the nation. As in previous years, U.S. News assessed nearly 3,000 county and county equivalents in 84 metrics across 10 key categories, including population health, public safety, equity, food and nutrition, and infrastructure.
Alongside the rankings, U.S. News also explored issues of equity in Hennepin County and the Twin Cities area of Minnesota – where George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in May 2020 – and how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted mental health in Hawaii. Honolulu County, Hawaii, achieved the highest score in the country in metrics within the rankings that assess a community’s mental health.
Overall, U.S. News’ Healthiest Communities project explores how communities across the country are working to improve the health of their residents, and helps inform residents and policymakers about interventions that can drive better health outcomes. Read more from USNews
1. Los Alamos County, New Mexico
5. Broomfield County, Colorado
6. San Miguel County, Colorado
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