CDC report reveals significant increase in preventable premature deaths from 2010-2022
Highest rates of preventable premature deaths found in rural communities with a majority Black, African American, American Indian or Alaska Native population
Limited access to healthcare providers is a major contributing factor
Preventable deaths more likely to occur in rural areas compared to urban or suburban regions
In a startling revelation, recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown that preventable premature deaths among Americans aged 80 years and below have increased significantly between 2010-2022. The CDC's analysis reveals that these preventable deaths from the five leading causes - heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, stroke and chronic lower respiratory disease - are more likely to occur in rural areas compared to urban or suburban regions. This concerning trend highlights a significant disparity in health outcomes between rural and urban America.
The CDC's report also indicates that many of these premature deaths could have been prevented, pointing towards limited access to healthcare providers as a major contributing factor. The issue is further exacerbated by the closure of hospitals and long distances to specialized care centers in rural areas. To address this problem, the CDC recommends a multipronged approach that includes improving access to healthcare, especially for those suffering from opioid use disorder, promoting physical activity and healthy eating habits, encouraging smoking cessation and safer use of seat belts and child safety seats. Additionally, the CDC suggests that addressing these issues could reduce rates of premature unintentional deaths.
Furthermore, the highest rates of preventable premature deaths were found in rural communities with a majority Black, African American, American Indian or Alaska Native population. This underscores the need for targeted interventions to address health disparities among these populations. The CDC's findings underline the urgent need for policy changes and healthcare infrastructure improvements to bridge the rural-urban divide and ensure equitable access to quality healthcare services.
Are there any specific causes of the limited access to healthcare providers in rural areas?
What percentage of preventable premature deaths can be attributed to each cause (heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, stroke and chronic lower respiratory disease)?
From 2010-2022, the percentage of preventable premature deaths among persons aged <80 years in the US increased.
Mortality data for US residents from the National Vital Statistics System was used to calculate preventable premature deaths from the five leading causes of death among persons aged <80 years.
Accuracy
The percentage of preventable premature deaths among persons aged <80 years in the US increased.
Preventable premature deaths were calculated separately for six urban-rural county categories nationally, 10 US Department of Health and Human Services public health regions, and 50 states and District of Columbia.
46 million Americans living in rural areas had higher rates of early death from preventable causes such as heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, stroke and chronic lower respiratory disease compared to urban or suburban residents according to the CDC.
Many of these early deaths were preventable and access to healthcare in rural areas is often limited due to hospital closures and long distances to specialized care centers.
Improving access to healthcare, especially for those with opioid use disorder and increasing uptake of treatment could reduce rates of premature unintentional death. The CDC recommends a multipronged approach to addressing these issues including encouraging physical activity and healthy eating, smoking cessation, the use of child safety seats and seat belts as well as safer prescribing of opioids for pain.
The highest rates of premature preventable death were found in rural communities with a majority Black, African American, American Indian or Alaska Native population.
Accuracy
From 2010-2022, premature heart disease deaths increased by over 9% in rural communities but fell by over 10% in urban areas.
Unintentional injury deaths, including drug overdoses and other types of poisoning, traffic crashes, drowning, suffocation and accidental firearm discharges rose in both rural and urban areas. The largest increases occurred in metropolitan and suburban regions which increased the rural-urban divide for this category but deaths from unintentional injuries remained higher among rural residents.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The author makes an appeal to authority by quoting Macarena Garciá and Gery Guy from the CDC. The author also uses inflammatory rhetoric by stating that 'rural residents tend to be sicker and poorer and have worse health outcomes than do their nonrural peers.'
The reasons are very similar for many of the conditions, but for cancer specifically, we have to remember that screening, prevention services as well as treatment services are much more accessible in urban areas. So that means they are limited in rural areas.
Rural residents tend to be sicker and poorer and have worse health outcomes than do their nonrural peers.
During the years 2010-2022, Americans living in rural areas had higher rates of preventable premature mortality from the five leading causes of death than those living in urban areas.
, Preventable premature deaths from cancer decreased from 21% to 0.3% during the study period.
The percentage of preventable premature deaths from heart disease increased steeply from 28.8% in 2019 to 33.6% in June 2022.
Most states experienced an increase in preventable early deaths from heart disease and stroke (96% and 88% of states, respectively) from 2019 through June 2022.
Accuracy
The mortality gap between most rural and most urban US counties increased for cancer, heart disease, chronic lower respiratory disease (CLRD), and stroke.
Preventable premature deaths from cancer decreased from 21% to 0.3% during the study period.
