Grays Harbor among unhealthiest counties in Washington
Grays Harbor was ranked as one of the unhealthiest counties in the state.
In a new report from County Health Rankings & Roadmaps it ranks each county based on Health Outcomes and Health Factors.
Health outcomes in the County Health Rankings represent measures of how long people live and how healthy people feel. Length of life is measured by premature death (years of potential life lost before age 75) and quality of life is measured by self‐reported health status (percent of people reporting poor or fair health and the number of physically and mentally unhealthy days within the last 30 days) and the % of low birth weight newborns.
Health factors in the County Health Rankings represent the focus areas that drive how long and how well we live, including health behaviors (tobacco use, diet & exercise, alcohol & drug use, sexual activity), clinical care (access to care, quality of care), social and economic factors (education, employment, income, family & social support, community safety), and the physical environment (air & water quality, housing & transit).
The report looked at counties from across the United States and has historical data back to 2011.
Of the 39 counties within the state, this year Grays Harbor ranks #36 for Health Outcomes and #35 for Health Factors.
Grays Harbor ranked as #35 in 2018 & 2017, up slightly higher to #34 in 2016 and slightly lower in 2012-2015 at #36. In 2011, Grays Harbor ranked as #31.
For Health Behaviors in 2019, Grays Harbor ranked #38 out of 39, with higher than state averages for smoking, obesity, physical inactivity, and teen births.
The data is not all negative. For Physical Environment, Grays Harbor ranked #7 out of 30 based on air pollution, drive time to work, drinking water violations, and other factors.
Pacific County ranked #37 out of 39 for Health Outcomes in 2019 and #27 in Health Factors.
San Juan once again ranked as the healthiest county within the state, followed by King and Snohomish. Ferry ranked as the unhealthiest overall.
| Health Outcomes Top 5 | Health Factors Top 5 |
| 1. San Juan County
2. King County 3. Snohomish County 4. Island County 5. Thurston County. |
1. King County
2. San Juan County 3. Kitsap County 4. Snohomish County 5. Island County |
| Health Outcomes Bottom 5 | Health Factors Bottom 5 |
| 35. Pend Oreille County
36. Grays Harbor County 37. Pacific County 38. Columbia County 39. Ferry County |
35. Grays Harbor County
36. Okanogan County 37. Mason County 38. Yakima County 39. Ferry County |
| 1 | San Juan (SJ) |
| 2 | King (KG) |
| 3 | Snohomish (SN) |
| 4 | Island (IS) |
| 5 | Thurston (TH) |
| 6 | Whitman (WH) |
| 7 | Chelan (CH) |
| 8 | Kitsap (KT) |
| 9 | Whatcom (WA) |
| 10 | Douglas (DO) |
| 11 | Clark (CA) |
| 12 | Kittitas (KI) |
| 13 | Franklin (FR) |
| 14 | Lincoln (LI) |
| 15 | Benton (BE) |
| 16 | Jefferson (JE) |
| 17 | Klickitat (KL) |
| 18 | Walla Walla (WL) |
| 19 | Skagit (SA) |
| 20 | Pierce (PI) |
| 21 | Skamania (SK) |
| 22 | Wahkiakum (WK) |
| 23 | Spokane (SP) |
| 24 | Asotin (AS) |
| 25 | Clallam (CM) |
| 26 | Grant (GA) |
| 27 | Stevens (ST) |
| 28 | Mason (MA) |
| 29 | Garfield (GF) |
| 30 | Lewis (LE) |
| 31 | Cowlitz (CO) |
| 32 | Yakima (YA) |
| 33 | Adams (AD) |
| 34 | Okanogan (OK) |
| 35 | Pend Oreille (PE) |
| 36 | Grays Harbor (GR) |
| 37 | Pacific (PA) |
| 38 | Columbia (CL) |
| 39 | Ferry (FE) |
