CVS, U.S. News report: These are the healthiest communities in America

CVS Health and U.S. News and World Report released their annual list of the country's healthiest communities this week, with Los Alamos County, New Mexico taking the top spot for the third straight year.

The report tracks 3,000 communities across the country on 89 measures from the local economy to healthcare access to social wellness. For example, Los Alamos County, which has a population of more than 19,000 in northeast New Mexico, earned high marks across the board including a perfect 100 score for housing and 94 on population health and infrastructure.

In addition to broad population factors, the analysis incorporates COVID-19 data and this year adds a category for environmental information. In Los Alamos, an 86 score translated to a majority of residents within walking distance of a park and a low drinking water violation rate, but the number of extreme heat days per year outpaced the national median.

These communities also landed in the top five this year: Falls Church, Virginia; Douglas County, Colorado; Morgan County, Utah and Carver County, Minnesota. Four communities in the top 20, including Falls Church, are located in Northern Virginia, the study found.

The report highlights a key theme in the industry at the moment: the intersection of mental health needs and social determinants of health. Communities that earned a low score in the mental health subcategory also tended to face lower life expectancy, lower median income and lower labor force participation. Poverty rates were higher in these regions, the report found.

In rural communities, higher numbers of adults were likely to report frequent mental distress, while in urban regions, Medicare beneficiaries were more likely to be diagnosed with depression, according to the report.

Data like this is critical as the healthcare system aims to address health equity, as what is necessary to combat these challenges is different in every community, Joneigh Khaldun, M.D., chief health equity officer at CVS Health, wrote in an accompanying editorial. 

"Now more than ever, we need to address social determinants of health and create a more equitable health care system that focuses on investing in our local communities," she said. "It will take stakeholders from across the health care spectrum to eliminate health disparities."

Addressing equity was one of the reasons that the report added the environmental data this year, Khaldun said. The report found Indigenous people are the most likely to at risk from natural hazards, with a higher risk than other ethnic groups for sustained cold temperatures, droughts, river and stream flooding and wildfires.

Black Americans, by comparison, are at greater risk from heat waves, tornadoes, hurricanes and coastal flooding compared to other racial groups, according to the report. Communities of color are also more likely to be impacted by noise pollution and exposure to hazardous waste and chemicals, both issues linked to worse outcomes.

"CVS Health recognizes that the health of all people is inextricably linked to the health of the planet," Khaldun said. "That’s why we’re taking a close look at the intersection of health equity and sustainability and identifying steps we can take at the local level to help create a more equitable and sustainable world."