"Nassau County - Long Island, New York"

Mineola, NY - Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano is pleased to announce that Nassau County ranks as one of the healthiest counties in New York State. The County Health Rankings, a report released today by University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, ranks Nassau County as number one in New York in terms of health factors (how healthy we live our lives) and number six for health outcomes (how healthy we are). This ranking is based on a comprehensive report that ranks the overall health of nearly every county in all 50 states by using a standard way to measure how healthy people are and how long they live.

“Nassau County’s ranks as one the healthiest counties in New York State,” said County Executive Mangano. “This is a testament to the high quality of health care, education, access to healthy foods, and the beautiful parks that are accessible to the residents of Nassau County.” “I am proud of all of our partners in Nassau County who work every day to improve the health of our residents and keep our families fit.”

The Rankings, available at www.countyhealthrankings.org, includes a snapshot of each county of New York with a color-coded map comparing each county’s overall health ranking. Researchers looked at “health factors” that affect people’s health within four categories: health behavior, clinical care, social and economic factors, and physical environment. Among the many health factors they looked at: rates of adult smoking, adult obesity, excessive drinking among adults, and teenage births; the number of uninsured adults, availability of primary care providers, and preventable hospital stays; rates of high school graduation, adults who have attended college, children in poverty; and community safety; access to healthy foods and air pollution levels.

County Health Rankings researchers also used five measures to assess the level of overall health or “health outcomes” for New York by county: the rate of people dying before age 75, the percent of people who report being in fair or poor health, the numbers of days people report being in poor physical and poor mental health, and the rate of low-birthweight infants.

“I’m encouraged by this report which ranks Nassau County as one of the healthiest counties in New York State,” said Maria Torroella Carney, M.D., F.A.C.P., Commissioner of Health. “We must continue to promote and protect health, and encourage our residents to adopt or maintain a healthy lifestyle so that they may live a long and productive life.”

2011 County Health Rankings Report Gives Nassau County

High Marks for Health