This recent article in the Austin Business Journal on a report from United Health Foundation confirms what was found in last year’s research on the most pressing social issues facing the ten counties that comprise Central Texas: health must be a concentrated area of focus in order to close the opportunity gap in Central texas.
Austin may be one of the healthiest cities in Texas, but the state as a whole is not faring well compared with the rest of the nation when it comes to health.
Texas ranks 37th among the states in terms of healthiness, unchanged from last year, according to the latest report from the United Health Foundation. That’s 5.5 percent below the national norm, making the state one of the least healthy in the country.
Among the challenges facing Texas are the high rate of uninsured individuals, currently 24.5 percent, and a high percentage of children in poverty at 22 percent.