Report: California Surpasses Various National Health Benchmarks
California has improved on several national health goals, such as reducing cancer-related deaths, AIDS prevalence and infant mortality, but some areas in the state still face high levels of diabetes and other diseases, according to a report published Monday by the California Department of Public Health, the Contra Costa Times reports.
Details of Report
For the report, DPH examined statewide and county-level data to compare outcomes for various diseases and conditions by county. The report also compared the health outcomes with the national goals of Healthy People 2020, an initiative that set federal health benchmarks and monitors the progress of community prevention programs (Abram, Contra Costa Times, 4/6).
Cancer Findings
According to the report, California improved its cancer-related death rate from 156.2 deaths per 100,000 people between 2008 and 2010 to about 151 deaths per 100,000 people between 2011 and 2013.
That rate surpassed the Healthy People benchmark for all cancer-related deaths, which is 161.4 deaths per 100,000 people.
Specifically, the report showed that California's death rate for:
- Colorectal cancer was 13.9 deaths per 100,000 people, compared with the national benchmark of 14.5 deaths per 100,000 people;
- Lung cancer was 33.6 deaths per 100,000 people, compared with the national benchmark of 45.5 deaths per 100,000 people;
- Female breast cancer was 20.7 deaths per 100,000 people, the same rate as the national benchmark; and
- Prostate cancer was 20.2 deaths per 100,000 people, compared with the national benchmark of 21.8 deaths per 100,000 people (DPH report, April 2015).
AIDS Findings
Meanwhile, the report found that the incidence of AIDS among California residents ages 13 and older decreased, marking a nearly 28% improvement (DPH release, 4/6).
The report showed that nine counties reported an average of zero cases of AIDS during the time period, while San Francisco had the highest rate at 30.4 cases per 100,000 people (DPH report, April 2015).
Other Findings
The report also found that infant mortality rates in California decreased among all races.
Specifically, the:
- Asian/Pacific Islander infant mortality rate improved by 21%;
- Black infant mortality rate improved by 17%;
- White infant mortality rate improved by 13%; and
- Hispanic infant mortality rate improved by 7% (DPH release, 4/6).
However, the report found that California failed to make major improvements in some health conditions, including:
- Alzheimer's disease;
- Diabetes; and
- Chronic liver disease (Contra Costa Times, 4/6).