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Florida's Health
How healthy is Florida?
Broward County
Fitter, But HIV Is a Problem
Population: 1.93 million Compared to the state’s population overall, Broward’s population is younger and less white.
The Good News
- Fewer violent crimes, lower rates of smoking and much better access to gyms, parks and fitness opportunities than the averages for Florida. A Broward resident is more likely than the average Floridian to sleep eight hours a night.
- Poor people in Broward are more likely than other poor Floridians to live within a half-mile of a grocery store.
The Bad News
- Broward vies with Miami-Dade for the highest HIV prevalence in Florida — and therefore in the nation. Overall STD rates are increasing.
- Broward health-care costs are 10% higher than the Florida average.
Palm Beach County
Drug Overdoses Mar the Picture
Population: 1.47 million
Palm Beach County has the highest median household income among major Florida counties — nearly $7,000 above the state number. It’s older than Florida overall, has a somewhat higher share of the population that’s white non-Hispanic and somewhat lower shares that are African-American and Hispanic.
The Good News
- The county has the highest rate of insured kids among major Florida counties. Overall, the number of uninsured is decreasing.
- Residents here have relatively low rates of smoking and obesity, DUI deaths and births to teens. Adult obesity is below state and national averages.
- Palm Beach has a higher than average number of doctors relative to the population. It has the best air quality among major counties and ranks highest among major Florida counties in health factors.
The Bad News
- Highest rate of drug overdose deaths among the major counties.
- Health-care costs are about $500 a year above the state average.
- STD prevalence, though below state and national averages, is increasing.
Hillsborough County
Working to Improve
Population: 1.41 million
Among the major counties, Hillsborough most closely resembles the state averages of about 60% white, non-Hispanic, 17% black and 22% Hispanic. Median household income is higher in Hillsborough than in the state.
The Good News
- The county has a higher percentage of mothers who get prenatal care than in Florida on average.
- Compared to the state and nation, residents live longer. Hillsborough has the lowest rate of violent crime among Florida’s major counties.
- The Department of Health in Hillsborough is offering a diabetes prevention program in Spanish. It also is offering a free national diabetes prevention program.
- Physical activity in the county has increased in recent years. A work group devoted to school transportation identified 10 “high” crash areas to target for improvements to make children safer and encourage parents to let them walk or cycle to school.
The Bad News
- The county ranks poorly in a measure of health outcomes and healthy behaviors — avoiding premature death, how people feel, not smoking and avoiding obesity.
- Health-care costs are above the state average. The county rates slightly below average in the share of population insured, including children. Hillsborough sits in the bottom fourth of Florida counties for kids getting involved in physical activity.
- It’s worse than other major counties at excess drinking, tied with Duval for DUI death rate, has above state average STD rates.
- Critical issue: Alcohol-related fatalities and opioid abuse.
Orange County
Problem Area: HIV
Population: 1.35 million
Among major Florida counties, Orange is younger — it has the lowest percentage of seniors — and larger shares of its population are Hispanic or black. It’s on par with the state in percentage of adults and children insured. Compared to Florida, Orange’s median household income is about $400 above the state as are its healthcare costs.
The Good News
- Nearly nine in 10 county residents have easy access to exercise opportunities.
- The county has one clinical care physician per 1,210 residents compared to the state average of one per 1,380 residents.
- Even with all the tourist traffic, Orange has better air quality than Florida’s average — 13% better than the state in the most recent report. Ironically, the county has higher-than-average numbers of preventable hospitalizations from asthma.
The Bad News
- Orange reports climbing rates for heart disease, stroke, heart failure and diabetes in recent years and hasn’t been able to improve residents’ physical activity. Kindergarten immunization levels are worse than the state average.
- Newly diagnosed HIV cases rose 9% to 458 in 2016. Overall, HIV and STDs numbers are rising.
- ER trips due to opioid overdoses doubled from 2015.
