Cobb County Sixth Healthiest in the State

Cobb County lost its spot as one of the five healthiest counties in Georgia in the 2012 County Health Rankings compiled by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

These two groups have compiled rankings of the nation’s health on a county-by-county basis since 2010. In its first report, Cobb County ranked fourth healthiest in the state, but has fallen one spot each year. In the 2012 report Cobb County ranked sixth healthiest in Georgia.

According to the report, Georgia’s healthiest residents can be found in Fayette County, while Talbot County is least healthy in the state. The Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation created an index for determining the overall health of residents that looks at a number of medical, social and economic factors. The factors include a county’s number of adult smokers, number of obese adults, the teen birth rate, number of uninsured residents, number of children living in poverty, level of residents’ education, number of fast food restaurants and air pollution.

The report found that Cobb County ranked better than the state average in each category except excessive drinking and air pollution. The rate of excessive drinking in Cobb was 17 percent while the state average was only 14 percent. Compared to the rest of the state, Cobb County experienced more days when particulate matter was unhealthy for sensitive populations as well as more days when ozone levels were high.

The majority of counties with the lowest ranking—those ranked 118 to 156—are located in central and south Georgia, while most of those with the highest rankings—1 to 39—are located in north central Georgia. 

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