Other Local Health Status and Access Indicators

In 2021, rates declined as the economy began to recover from the pandemic; however, New Castle County unemployment rates have remained above both Delaware and the U.S. Because many have employer-based health insurance coverage, continued economic recovery will be important to maintaining access to care. In recent years, the county has had a lower percentage (5.1 percent) of the population without health insurance than Delaware (5.8 percent) and the United States (8.7 percent). Delaware expanded Medicaid eligibility effective January 1, 2014. According to an analysis published by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 62,500 uninsured adults became eligible for Medicaid because of the expansion. New Castle County’s crime rates have been higher than Delaware rates for serious property offenses, other property and social offenses, robbery, burglary, larceny/theft, motor vehicle theft, property destruction/vandalism, and weapon law violations.

Other Local Health Status and Access Indicators

Delaware is home to three counties. In the 2021 County Health Rankings, New Castle County ranked number one both for Health Outcomes and for Health Factors (above Sussex and Kent counties).

Community Health Status Indicators (CHSI) compares County Health Rankings indicators for each county with those for peer counties across the United States. Each county is compared to 30 to 35 of its peers, which are selected based on socioeconomic characteristics such as population size, population density, percent elderly, per-capita income, and poverty rates. In CHSI, New Castle County compared unfavorably to peer counties for 16 of the 34 benchmark indicators. New Castle County was in the bottom quartile compared to peer counties for the following indicators: • Years of potential life lost before age 75 per 100,000 • Percent of live births with low birthweight • Newly diagnosed chlamydia cases per 100,000 • Percent of adults 25-44 with some college • Percent unemployed • Ratio of income at 80th percentile to 20th percentile • Percent of children in single-parent households • Reported violent crime offenses per 100,000 • Average daily density of fine particulate matter (PM2.5)

Secondary data from Delaware Health and Social Services (DHSS), the Centers for Disease Control, the Health Resources and Services Administration, the United States Department of Agriculture, and others also were assessed. Based on an assessment of available secondary data, the indicators presented in Exhibit 4 appear to be most significant in New Castle County. An indicator is considered significant if it was found to vary materially from a benchmark statistic (e.g., an average value for Delaware, for peer counties, or for the United States). For example, the deaths due to poisoning (including drug overdose) rate in the county was

43.5 per 100,000, significantly higher than the U.S. average of 24.0 per 100,000. The last column identifies the Exhibit number in this report for each indicator. Exhibit 4: Significant Indicators

Indicator Area Value Value Benchmark Area Exhibit

65+ population change, 2020-2030 Poverty rate, Black, 2016-2020 Poverty rate, Hispanic, 2016-2020 Poverty rate Low Income (<200% of FPL) Less than High School Diploma Unemployment

Population without health insurance New Castle County 30.5% 2.6% Community total

7 New Castle County 16.7% 12.8% U.S., All races/ethnicities 13 New Castle County 16.3% 12.8% U.S., All races/ethnicities 13 Community 1 16.8% 11.2% New Castle County 15 Community 1 35.2% 24.0% New Castle County 15 Community 1 12.5% 8.4% New Castle County 15 New Castle County 6.3% 5.3% United States 17

Port Penn 12.9% 8.7% United States 18

Rockland 24.7% 8.7% United States 18

Rent burden (> 30% income on housing) Community 1 51.5% 49.1% United States Hockessin 54.3% 49.1% United States

Newark 56.7% 49.1% United States

Community Need Index™ Years of Potential Life Lost Before 75 Per 100,000 Average number of mentally unhealthy days Percent of adults who are current smokers Community 1

4.4 3.0 United States New Castle County 7,918 6,900 United States New Castle County 4.3 4.1 United States New Castle County 18.4% 17.0% United States Percent of adults reporting no leisure time physical activity New Castle County 24.7% 23.0% United States Newly diagnosed Chlamydia Cases per 100,000 New Castle County 643.1 627.7 United States

Ratio of population to dentists

New Castle County 1,639:1 1,400:1 United States Rate of hospital stays for ambulatory-care sensitive conditions New Castle County 4,896 4,236 United States Percent Children in Single-Parent Households Reported Violent Crime Offenses per 100,000 New Castle County 28.1% 27.9% United States New Castle County 551.3 386.0 United States

Deaths Due to Injury Per 100,000

New Castle County 82.0 72.0 United States Average daily density of fine particulate matter (air pollution) New Castle County 9.4 7.2 United States Percent of workforce that drives alone to work New Castle County 79.9% 76.0% United States

Percent of adults with some college

New Castle County 63.9% 69.9% Peer counties Income Inequality (ration of income 80th to 20th percentile) New Castle County 4.6% 4.2% Peer counties Percent of live births with low birthweight New Castle County 9.0% 7.9% Peer counties

Mortality due to accidental poisoning and exposure to noxious substances (per 100,000) New Castle County 45.3 26.9 United States

Cancer Mortality (all cancer sites), per 100,000

New Castle County 161.3 152.4 United States Death due to poisoning (including drug overdose), per 100,000 New Castle County 43.5 24.0 United States Infant Mortality per 1,000 live births New Castle County 7.8 5.7 United States

Binge drinking New Castle County 19.8% 17.2% United States 20 20 20 22 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 29 29 29

31

32 33 39 40

Source: Verité Analysis.

When available New Castle County community health data are arrayed by race and ethnicity, significant differences are observed for:

• Poverty rates • Uninsured rates • Educational achievement • Low birthweight babies (per 1,000 live births) • Teen birth rates • Infant mortality rates These differences indicate the presence of racial and ethnic health inequities and disparities.