Bristol County healthiest county in R.I. for third year in a row

BRISTOL COUNTY AGAIN was the healthiest county in the state, according to the annual County Health Rankings by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. / COURTESY ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION
BRISTOL COUNTY AGAIN was the healthiest county in the state, according to the annual County Health Rankings by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. / COURTESY ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION

PROVIDENCE – For the third year in a row, Bristol County is the healthiest county in Rhode Island and Providence County is the least healthy, according to the seventh annual County Health Rankings by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.
Coming in second was Washington County, moving up a spot from last year. Newport County fell to third place from last year’s second. Kent County was unchanged in fourth place.
The rankings measure the overall health of nearly every county in all 50 states, and look at a measures that affect the future health of communities, such as high school graduation rates, access to healthy foods, rates of smoking, obesity and teen births.
For teen births, Bristol County reported seven, while Washington had eight; Newport, 14; Kent, 19; and Providence, 31.
Bristol and Washington counties had among the lowest smoking rates at 13 percent each, while Newport had 14 percent, Kent, 15 percent, and Providence, 16 percent.
Bristol had the lowest obesity rate at 21 percent. In this category, Newport was second with a 22 percent rate, Washington was third with a 24 percent rate, and Kent and Providence counties were tied at 28 percent.

Bristol County also had the lowest childhood poverty rate at 9 percent, while Providence County had the highest at 27 percent.
And Bristol County tied with Newport County for having the highest percentage of residents with some college at 77 percent. Providence County again was the lowest at 61 percent.

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