New Report Shows L.A. County Lagging Others in Select Health Areas
Los Angeles County has some of the worst mortality rates for diabetes, coronary heart disease and other health conditions in the state, according to a report the California Department of Public Health released this week, the Los Angeles Times reports (Lin, Los Angeles Times, 4/9).
Report Methodology/Findings
The report evaluated 58 California counties and ranked them on 30 health indicators, such as infectious disease and birth outcome, between 2005 and 2007.Â
The state collected the data as part of an effort to measure progress toward health goals officials are hoping to meet by 2010.
Rankings
The report ranked Los Angeles County 48th in deaths from heart disease and 46th in deaths from diabetes, prompting county officials to say that obesity-related conditions still are hitting hard in the county.
The report indicated that Los Angeles County had higher rates of infection for HIV, chlamydia and gonorrhea than most other counties (Abram, Los Angeles Daily News, 4/9).Â
L.A. County also was not doing as well as other counties on breastfeeding, the report found.
Conversely, Los Angeles County had fewer deaths from lung cancer than most other counties, according to the report (Los Angeles Times, 4/9).
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