America’s Health Rankings is celebrating its 30th year with the release of the 2019 Annual Report, which shows where Illinois – 26th in this year’s report –  is doing well and where it is facing challenges related to the health of individuals and communities across the state. Illinois ranked 34th when the America’s Health Rankings were first issued in 1990.

Here in Illinois, the 2019 Annual Report finds:

• Strengths: high immunization coverage among children, high rate of dentists and low prevalence of frequent physical distress

• Challenges: high prevalence of excessive drinking, high levels of air pollution and high incidence of chlamydia

• In the past five years, drug deaths increased 63 percent from 11.1 to 18.1 deaths per 100,000 population

• Since 1990, violent crime decreased 49 percent from 795 to 404 offenses per 100,000 population

• In the past two years, mental health providers increased 18 percent from 193.8 to 228.8 per 100,000 population

To mark 30 years of America’s Health Rankings, the 2019 Annual Report also shows that over the past three decades, the nation has accomplished meaningful progress in improving the health of communities through long-term public health efforts like decreasing rates of smoking and infant mortality.