Primaris Press Release
| For immediate release: June 15, 2009 |
Contact: Jeremy Milarsky Primaris Communications Department (800) 735-6776, Ext. 136 |
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Missouri Health Lags Behind Nation
Primaris releases report on status of Missourians’ health
Core News Facts:
- On June 17, 2009, Primaris will release Missouri Health by the Numbers 2009, a report focused on ten health topics, comparing Missouri to other states.
- Missouri scores below average in nine out of ten topics.
- Missouri’s compares worst in death rates of smoking-related deaths (45), cancer (40), heart disease (40), stroke (39) and kidney disease (36).
COLUMBIA, Mo. — When a Missouri nonprofit started compiling state health data for a new report, it expected to see mixed results. Instead, the data showed a health system lagging behind national averages.
Missouri scored worse than the average state in nine out of ten topics.
“It magnified our concerns. We knew Missouri had room for improvement, but we had hoped we were running with the pack. It turns out in many areas we are being left behind,” said Jerry Kennett, MD, board president of Primaris, the nonprofit which developed the report.
The full report, Missouri Health by the Numbers 2009, will be released statewide June 17. It provides an overview of notable health topics, including comparative state ranks from the most-recently available data.
“By far the most concerning number in the report is the adult smoking-attributable death rate. Missouri ranks near the bottom at 45th in the nation,” said Sharon Hoffarth, MD, Primaris medical director. “This directly relates to the rates of smoking-related diseases in the state. Missouri also posts low rankings for cancer [40th], heart disease [40th] and stroke [39th].”
Missouri came in slightly above average in one measure, the diabetes death rate. At 24.5 per 100,000 Missourians, the state rate is just above the U.S. average (24.6), placing Missouri as 24th in the nation.
Approximately 326,000 Missourians have diabetes.
“We can take little comfort in Missouri’s ranking for diabetes prevalence. In this case, average is not good. Look at Missouri’s poor showing on obesity/overweight and physical activity rates, both with worsening trends –these are significant contributors to the diabetes epidemic. Then look at our poor rankings for heart attack and stroke deaths as well as for the prevalence of chronic kidney disease and dialysis – diabetes strongly contributes to all of these diseases. These statistics tell us that we currently aren’t doing a good job preventing or treating diabetes either,” Hoffarth said.
“We have a huge opportunity to do a better job in the future, working together to put more emphasis and resources toward prevention efforts and by improving the performance of our health care system,” she said.
“We have to analyze these numbers realizing this isn’t a situation we can ignore. It’s going to take major efforts from policymakers, health care providers, and the citizens of our state. We have many needs such as preventive care, smoking cessation, and public awareness. The bad news is we have comparatively bad statistics at present, but the good news is we have great opportunity for improvement,” Kennett said.
The goal of Missouri Health by the Numbers 2009 is to provide an objective, quick reference that illustrates major health concerns for the state in a concise format. The report uses publicly available data from sources including the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
By providing an easy-to-use guide, Primaris hopes to raise awareness of health issues and enable Missourians to take better care of themselves. The nonprofit plans to release a new Missouri Health by the Numbers annually.
“We wanted to take the pulse of the state’s health care and it turns out Missouri could use a new prescription,” said Kennett.
The report is available online at http://www.primaris.org/documents/mohealth09.pdf.
About Primaris
Primaris is a nonprofit, health care firm with 25 years experience working to improve healthcare for Missourians. Its mission is to improve health care delivery and outcomes by promoting excellence, advancing knowledge and developing innovative solutions for physicians, other providers, businesses, government, patients and consumers. Online at www.primaris.org.
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