The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is out with its annual rankings of the health of New Jersey Counties.
Based on an analysis of more than 30 factors including housing, education, and jobs, the foundation rates Morris as the state’s healthiest county and Cumberland as the least healthy.
This year’s report puts new emphasis on the impact of race.
Toni Lewis is the foundation’s community coach. She says African-Americans have worse health outcomes than the lowest-ranked county.
“In addressing this we need to go beyond just making sure people can see a doctor. We need to fix the things that stand in the way of good health like residential segregation, discrimination, or not having enough good-paying jobs.”
Marjorie Paloma is the foundation’s program director. She says the goal is to use the data to drive changes to build a culture of health.
“Where we live shouldn’t make a difference in how healthy we are and how long we live and how well we feel. No one in America should have less opportunity to be healthy because of where they live, how much money they make, or what they look like.”