FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 24, 2021

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For Public Health Management Corporation
Emily Charles, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

2020 Pennsylvania State Health Assessment Released
Assessment highlights health challenges Pennsylvanians are facing and informs
public health priorities

PHILADELPHIA – The Research & Evaluation Group at Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) served as a collaborating partner with the Pennsylvania Department of Health, the Health Pennsylvania Partnership (HPP) and Bloom Planning in the release of the 2020 Pennsylvania State Health Assessment (SHA), titled The State of Our Health: A Statewide Health Assessment of Pennsylvania. The comprehensive Assessment identifies specific health challenges in Pennsylvania and indicates where the largest improvements can be made.

The 2020 SHA explores the many ways Pennsylvanians have been impacted by social determinants of health, health equity, and health factors. The key themes of the Assessment focus on access to care, environmental health, mental health, maternal and infant health, substance use, injury and violence prevention, chronic diseases, and infectious diseases and immunization. The report examines inequities through the lens of race and ethnicity, socio-economic status, gender, age, education, sexual orientation, geography, and disability.

“The COVID-19 pandemic and widespread recognition of racism as a public health crisis has shined a spotlight on the deep-rooted health inequities experienced by our most vulnerable communities,” said Jennifer Keith, Deputy Director, Research & Evaluation Group at PHMC. “The important findings released in the 2020 Pennsylvania State Health Assessment will be used to inform public health priorities, influence policy, guide health care providers and programing to better address the health needs of our community. We look forward to the discussions these findings foster, including ongoing and expanded data analysis that can lead to change.”

Key findings include:

  • The percent of high school students who, in the past 12 months, felt sad or hopeless almost every day for two weeks or more in a row, so that they stopped doing some usual activities, increased from 28 percent in 2015 to 35 percent in 2019. An even higher percentage of Hispanic and lesbian, gay, and bisexual high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless.
  • In 2019, about 17 percent of adults binge drank, 10 percent used illicit drugs, and 7 percent had a substance use disorder. Lesbian, gay, or bisexual adults had a higher prevalence of binge drinking.
  • Based on 2015-2017 data, approximately one in two Pennsylvania residents will be diagnosed with cancer at some point during their lifetime, and one in five will die of cancer.
  • While tobacco use has declined, it remains a leading risk factor for chronic diseases. In 2019, prevalence of smoking was higher among gay, lesbian and bisexual adults, those with lower household incomes, and those with lower educational status.
  • Among adults under age 65 in 2018, about 7 percent were uninsured. In 2019, among adults, 16 percent did not have a personal health care provider, and 10 percent needed to see a doctor in the past year but were unable to due to cost.
  • In 2018 and 2019, non-Hispanic black adults were less likely to have health care insurance and more unable to see a doctor due to cost than non-Hispanic white adults. Hispanic adults were less likely to have insurance and to have a personal health care provider and were more unable to see a doctor due to cost than non-Hispanic white adults.
  • Early and adequate prenatal care is important for the health of the mother and can reduce newborn risks. In 2018, 2 percent of females who gave birth did not receive prenatal care. Black females were about four times less likely to receive prenatal care compared to whites.
  • There were 1,833 neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS)-related newborn hospital stays in 2018. NAS was highest among white babies, those from rural counties, and from families with lower household incomes.
  • Between 2003 and 2018, syphilis increased by close to 400 percent, chlamydia increased by 59 percent, and gonorrhea increased by 34 percent. Black and Hispanic individuals were more likely to be diagnosed with syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia.
  • Air pollution is one of the greatest health challenges in Pennsylvania. In 2019, the state ranked 47 of 50 states for the general public’s exposure to acceptable levels of particulate matter.
  • Violent crime in Pennsylvania decreased from 400 per 100,000 in 2008 to 306 per 100,000 residents in 2018. Between 2013 and 2018, the homicide rate among white residents held steady at two per 100,000, while for black individuals the rate increased to 29 per 100,000.

“The State Health Assessment is essential to the department’s mission, which is creating a healthy Pennsylvania for all,” said Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam. “It identifies health disparities, opportunities for health improvement, and resources available to support and promote improved health status. The State Health Assessment further reinforces our commitment to promoting healthy behaviors, preventing injury and disease, and assuring the safe delivery of quality health care for all Pennsylvanians.”

The 2020 SHA was developed by the Department of Health’s Office of Operational Excellence and the Healthy Pennsylvania Partnership (HPP), a collaboration of private and public partners dedicated to improving the health of Pennsylvanians.

For more information or to view the full 2020 State Health Assessment, please visit https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/Documents/Health%20Planning/SHA%20Complete%20Report_2021.pdf.

About Public Health Management Corporation
Public Health Management Corporation (PHMC) is a nonprofit public health institute that creates and sustains healthier communities. PHMC uses best practices and evidence-based guidelines to improve community health through direct service, partnership, innovation, policy, research, technical assistance and a prepared workforce. PHMC’s Research & Evaluation Group (R&E) is dedicated to helping clients understand their communities, improve their programming, and strengthen their impact by offering a range of methods and technologies to meet the needs of a shifting public health landscape. The R&E Group also conducts the Household Health Survey, the largest and most in-depth local survey in the country. To learn more, visit www.phmcresearch.org.

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