OUR U.P. WELL-BEING IS VITAL!
The more we know the healthier we are.
ASSESSMENT "SNAPSHOT" OVERVIEW
Over 4,820 U.P. Residents Surveyed.Survey results cross-referenced to state and national data.
PRIMARY FACTORS
Impacting U.P. Residents Health Over a Lifetime
40% of health outcomes over our lifetime are due to socioeconomic factors such as education, job status, income, social support, safe community.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC
Socioeconomic status measures, such as income and education are important determinants of health for Upper Peninsula residents. Collaboration between partners and leaders in healthcare, education, local governments and the business community will be important as we move forward in community health improvement planning.
30% of health outcomes over our lifetime are due to health behaviors (tobacco, diet, exercise, alcohol use)
HEALTH BEHAVIORS
Cancer, heart disease, diabetes and stroke are leading causes of death in the Upper Peninsula. These chronic diseases are largely preventable. Reducing tobacco use, obesity and the abuse of alcohol and other drugs would dramatically improve morbidity and mortality rates among our residents.
BARRIERS TO HEALTH CARE
Barriers to healthcare such as cost, lack of insurance, and the shortage of providers are important issues for Upper Peninsula residents, particularly under a changing political landscape.
ENVIRONMENT
Nearly 20 percent of the general population in the Upper Peninsula is age 65 or older. Older adults have a greater need for home health services, assisted living and nursing home care.
KEY ASSESSMENT THEMES
These key themes emerged throughout all data.
The impact of an aging population:
In the Upper Peninsula, nearly 20 percent of the non-incarcerated population
is age 65 or older, compared with 15 percent statewide. In Keweenaw and Ontonagon Counties, greater than 30 percent of the population is 65 years
or older.
Since the chronic disease burden is higher in older adults, and aging adults have greater needs for home health services, assisted living and nursing home care, the shifting of a community’s age distribution toward older cohorts has profound implications on the needs for health care and elder services.
The importance of prevention:
Chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and stroke are the leading causes of death in the U.P. and across much of the globe. Cancer and heart disease alone account for about half of all U.P. deaths. They are also largely preventable.
Curtailing tobacco use, obesity and the abuse of alcohol and other drugs alone would dramatically reduce morbidity and mortality among U.P. residents. The emerging opioid epidemic is taking its toll in the region through its broad impact on maternal and child health, child abuse and neglect, neonatal drug addiction/withdrawal, incarceration and employment.
The powerful correlation between socio-economic status and health:
Although the U.P. spans over 16,000 square miles and comprises approximately one third of Michigan’s land mass ,its residents are more alike than they are different. Income and education, i.e. socioeconomic status, are greater determinants of health status and access than geography in the U.P.
As communities move forward in community health improvement planning, it will be important that non-traditional partners in healthcare be at the table such as
educators, volunteer organizations, leaders in the business community, city, county and state government.
Health care access under a changing political landscape:
Prior to implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2014, 18.5 percent of U.P. residents age 18-64 did not have health insurance. By 2017, that rate had declined to an estimated 7.0 percent due to Michigan’s Medicaid expansion and the newly created health insurance marketplace.
Regardless of one’s view of the ACA, it has clearly succeeded in expanding the pool of individuals with health insurance coverage, hence reducing one of the barriers residents experience in accessing healthcare. The impact of on-going amendments to the ACA remains to be seen.
