Scott Ranked Fifth Healthiest County in MN

Scott County is one healthy place, statistically speaking.

Of 87 Minnesota counties, Scott was ranked fifth for overall health, according to a mammoth study by the Minnesota Department of Health. Scott's neighbor, Carver County, ranked first in overall health. Rice county, though not in the top 10 for overall health, was ranked number one for healthy behaviors.  

The study ranks counties by two criteria: health outcomes and health factors.

"Health outcomes" include mortality, defined as the rate of people dying before age 75, and morbidity. Morbidity is a sweeping term that includes the percentage of residents reporting fair or poor health, number of days spent sick, number of day spent suffering from mental illness and the rate of low birth-weight infants.

The second criteria, "health factors," include a large number of subcategories, such as health behavior, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment. 

The healthiest counties were concentrated in south-central Minnesota, with a number in close proximity to the Mayo Clinic, and the richest parts of the metro area. The least healthy counties are clustered in northern Minnesota. The bottom five are poor, almost entirely rural counties. The last two, Cass and Mahnomen, are stricken with poverty. In both, over 50 percent of the children are eligible for free and reduced lunch.

Here are some highlights from the report, including side-by-side comparisons with Scott's neighbors.

Overall Health Ranking

• Carver: 1st 
• Scott: 5th
• Le Sueur: 11th
• Dakota: 15th
• Rice: 22nd
• Sibley: 44th
• Hennepin: 55th

Mortality

• Carver: Second 
• Scott: Third
• Dakota: Fifth
• Rice: Sixth
• Le Sueur: 17th
• Sibley: 27th
• Hennepin: 40th

Morbidity

• Le Sueur: 21st
• Carver: 23rd
• Scott: 36th
• Dakota: 44th
• Rice: 57th
• Sibley: 69th 
• Hennepin: 74th

Health Behaviors

• Rice: 1st
• Hennepin: 4th
• Scott: Fifth
• Carver: Sixth
• Dakota: 8th
• Le Sueur: 29th
• Sibley: 37th

Smoking Among Adults

• Rice: 9 percent
• Sibley: 12 percent
• Le Sueur: 14 percent
• Scott: 15 percent 
• Carver: 15 percent
• Hennepin: 15 percent
• Dakota: 16 percent

Adult Obesity

• Hennepin: 21 percent
• Rice: 24 percent
• Scott: 25 percent
• Carver: 26 percent
• Dakota: 26 percent
• Le Sueur: 30 percent
• Sibley: 30 percent

Physical Inactivity

• Hennepin: 16 percent
• Rice: 17 percent
• Scott: 17 percent
• Carver: 17 percent
• Dakota: 17 percent
• Le Sueur: 22 percent
• Sibley: 24 percent

Excessive Drinking

• Rice: 15 percent
• Le Sueur: 17 percent
• Hennepin: 19 percent
• Dakota: 20 percent
• Scott: 22 percent
• Carver: 25 percent
• Sibley: No data

Clinical Care

• Dakota: 4th
• Carver: 7th
• Hennepin: 9th
• Rice: 16th
• Scott: 31st
• Le Sueur: 57th
• Sibley: 85th

Social and Economic

• Carver: First
• Scott: Third
• Dakota: 7th
• Sibley: 55th
• Le Sueur: 57th
• Rice: 62nd
• Hennepin: 73rd

Physical Environment

• Le Sueur: 3rd
• Sibley: 19th
• Carver: 35th
• Hennepin: 54th
• Scott: 56th
• Dakota: 58th
• Rice: 65th