View this email in your browser For Immediate Release:

Thursday, January 3, 2019



Contact:

James Garrow

215-200-7901

james.garrow@phila.gov

City report finds continued progress toward a healthier Philadelphia, but some troubling trends threaten progress

Today, Philadelphia Department of Public Health released the second Health of the City annual report, which describes the landscape of health for Philadelphia residents. Many health indicators are improving, but some indicators – particularly those related to opioid use and unhealthy behaviors – are troubling. Among the grimmest findings was that drug overdoses and homicides have caused a decline in life expectancy in Philadelphia. The latest data on teen health has good news though: cigarette use, drinking, sweetened beverage use, teen birth rates, and new cases of sexually-transmitted diseases have all continued to drop.



More of the good news: The infant mortality rate has declined nearly 25% over the last decade to 8.4 per 1,000 live births in 2017.

has declined nearly to 8.4 per 1,000 live births in 2017. The health of young children has improved. Rates of childhood obesity, lead exposure and asthma hospitalizations continue their decline .

. Overall, rates of unhealthy behaviors among teens declined in 2017 compared to previous years, including cigarette use, excessive drinking, and sweetened beverage consumption. Teen sexual health also continued to improve as teen birth rates and new cases of sexually transmitted diseases continued to decline in recent years.

Access to care has greatly improved as the number of Philadelphians without health insurance declined to less than 10% in 2017 and the supply of primary care physicians has increased. Some of the troubling news: The prevalence of risk factors for heart disease, the leading cause of death, remained high among adults in Philadelphia. Approximately 23 percent of Philadelphia adults reported cigarette smoking -- more than any other major city in the U.S. Obesity rates, affecting approximately one-third of Philadelphians , continue trending upward, particularly among non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics. The obesity epidemic is leading to very high rates of diabetes in all racial and ethnic groups, but particularly high rates in non-Hispanic Blacks, in which the prevalence is nearly 17% of adults. Non-Hispanic Blacks also have significantly higher rates of hypertension.

The use of both pharmaceutical and illicit opioids has created a public health crisis . Unintentional drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death for individuals ages 25 to 44. In 2017, the number of fatal drug overdoses more than tripled that of previous years and is four times higher than homicides. Related to the opioid epidemic, the city has experienced a rising rate of infectious illnesses among persons who inject drugs, neonatal abstinence syndrome, and homelessness .

. Unintentional drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death for individuals ages 25 to 44. In 2017, the that of previous years and is four times higher than homicides. Related to the opioid epidemic, the city has experienced a . After declining for several years, homicide rates increased in recent years .

. The increase in drug overdoses and homicides has caused a decline in life expectancy for men and women across most racial/ethnic groups in the city.

in the city. Across most health outcomes and factors, disparities between racial/ethnic groups continue to persist. Many of these disparities are driven by underlying disparities in poverty among these groups. The Health Department produces this report to help health care providers, City officials, people who make decisions for non-governmental organizations, and individuals learn about health in Philadelphia and the factors that influence our health.



Health of the City includes summaries of data from a variety sources to describe the demographics and health outcomes of the city’s residents as well as key factors that influence health in five broad categories: health outcomes, health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic determinants, and physical environment.



The Health of the City report and other Health Department reports can be download from the data page on the Health Department’s website. ###