According to the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute 2022 County Health Rankings report, Fairfax County is ranked the fourth healthiest county out of 133 in the commonwealth. Falls Church City ranks as the healthiest locality, while Fairfax City ranks as 13th in healthiest outcomes.
Complete health rankings are available online.
Health rankings are among the measures used to understand how long, and how well, our residents live. Rankings data include several measures, including access to nutritious foods, the percent of children living in poverty, air and water quality, housing, and transit. Importantly, data is used to highlight differences in opportunities and resources available to people across the county; this helps health departments to address health disparities by working with partners to ensure all residents have access to important programs and resources required to promote optimal health and well-being.
A key goal of the County Health Rankings is to broaden the public’s understanding of what shapes our health by providing data on more than 90 health-influencing factors. This year’s release features new data and reports to support recovery from the ongoing pandemic, highlighting mental health factors and overall well-being.
Some of the factors where the County and the health district, in general, excelled over the state average include the following:
- 24% of adults are obese; statewide the average is 32%
- Fewer County residents have “poor mental health days”, with 3.5 compared to the state average of 4.2 per year
- 99% of Fairfax County residents have access to exercise opportunities, compared to 78% in the rest of Virginia
- Fairfax County has fewer tobacco smokers; 11% compared to 14% statewide
- There is room for improvement in mammography; 37% of the population has had a mammogram compared with 44% statewide
While change in health-influencing factors takes time, the Fairfax County Health Department continues to collaborate with community partners through the Live Healthy Fairfax initiative to improve the health of all residents of the Fairfax Health District. The vision of Live Healthy Fairfax is to engage and empower residents to achieve optimal health and well-being.
There are many opportunities to make a difference in public health in the Fairfax Health District by engaging with the Partnership for Healthier Fairfax (PFHF) initiative. Register now for the virtual PFHF Spring meeting, Thursday, May 12 via Zoom, from 9:30 – 11:45 a.m. This year’s theme is Food Equity: Lifting Community Voice. Attendees will learn about innovative partnerships and actionable steps they can take to ensure community voice is part of creative solutions to addressing food inequities in the county.