NoVA Communities Among Nation's Top 5 Healthiest Places

NORTHERN VIRGINIA — Two Northern Virginia jurisdictions are among the top five healthiest communities in the United Sates, according to a new national ranking.

In its fourth annual Healthiest Communities rankings, U.S. News & World Report ranked the city of Falls Church at No. 3, the same spot where it stood in 2020. Loudoun County came in at No. 4 in the latest rankings of the nation’s healthiest communities, up from its No. 6 ranking in 2020.

Los Alamos County, New Mexico, was ranked the nation's healthiest community for the second year in a row. Douglas County, Colorado, came in at No. 2 and Broomfield County, Colorado, rounded out the list at No. 5.

In addition to Falls Church and Loudoun County, three other Northern Virginia jurisdictions were among the top 40: Fairfax County at No. 14, Fairfax City at No. 28 and Arlington County at No. 39.

U.S. News & World Report put together the rankings in collaboration with the Aetna Foundation, a charitable affiliate of CVS Health.

The Healthiest Communities rankings are based on an evaluation of nearly 3,000 communities nationwide across 84 health and health-related metrics in 10 categories, from education and population health to infrastructure and environment.

Falls Church received a score of 95. Some of its top category scores were 100 for population health, 100 for education, and 95 for economy. The city's average life expectancy of 81.6 years is higher than the national median of 77.5 years. In addition, it has 4.0 percent of people without health insurance compared to the national median of 10.6 percent.

According to U.S. News & World Report, the top three communities in the population health subcategory were all in Northern Virginia, with Falls Church at No. 1, Fairfax County at No. 2 and Arlington County at No. 3.

In the subcategories, Falls Church also ranked No. 1 in the country on education. For public safety, the city of Alexandria ranked No. 3 followed by Arlington County at No. 5.

As the fourth-healthiest community in the United States, Loudoun County received a score of 94. Some of its top category scores were 100 for economy, 91 for population health, and 87 for education. The county's average life expectancy of 84.2 years is higher than the national median of 77.5 years.

RELATED: Falls Church Named Among 2020 Healthiest U.S. Communities

Population health is measured by residents' access to care, health behaviors, health conditions, health outcomes and mental health. Public safety looks at the rates of property crimes and violent crimes in a jurisdiction.

While Falls Church and Loudoun County ranked in the top five healthiest communities, they did struggle on some other metrics. Both jurisdictions scored below in the subcategory of educational equity.

Education equity reflects the relative difference or disparity across racial and ethnic groups in attainment of a bachelor's degree or higher by adults 25 and older. The population subgroups used in the calculation are non-Hispanic white; Hispanic or Latino; and Black or African American.

US News & World Report said the rankings and analysis aim to serve as a tool to inform residents, community health leaders and elected officials about policies and best practices for better health outcomes by assessing which communities offer their residents the greatest opportunity to live a productive, healthy life.

To compile the rankings, U.S. News & World Report partnered with the University of Missouri Center for Applied Research and Engagement Systems, a research institution skilled in community health assessment.

Overall, the rankings are based on data drawn from sources such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

RELATED: Loudoun County Named Among 2020 Healthiest U.S. Communities

Much of the data used to compile the 2021 Healthiest Communities rankings came from periods predating the COVID-19 pandemic. But the rankings would not have been affected by the pandemic’s impact on communities, according to the researchers.

“Over the past year and a half, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated several issues that we knew existed within the health care system, including the interdependence between the health of our communities and our personal health,” Karen Lynch, president and CEO of CVS Health Corporation, said in a statement Tuesday.

“While our country appears to be turning a corner on the pandemic, with more people getting vaccinated every day, we understand that there is a lot of important work that still needs to be done to address the underlying community health issues that were brought to the forefront during the pandemic,” Lynch said.

Here's a look at the top 10 Healthiest Communities for 2021.

1. Los Alamos County, New Mexico
2. Douglas County, Colorado
3. City of Falls Church, Virginia
4. Loudoun County, Virginia
5. Broomfield County, Colorado
6. San Miguel County, Colorado
7. Pitkin County, Colorado
8. Howard County, Maryland
9. Morgan County, Utah
10. Routt County, Colorado

See the full list and learn more about 2021's Healthiest Communities.