Introduction

The United Health Foundation is pleased to provide the America’s Health Rankings Health of Women and Children Data 2020 Update. America’s Health Rankings’ purpose is to inform and drive action to build healthier communities by offering credible, trusted data – at the local, state or national level – for improving health and health care.

Amid the current COVID-19 pandemic, we understand that public health needs are rapidly changing as states across the country work to keep Americans safe. People of all ages with severe underlying medical conditions are at greater risk of severe complications from COVID-19. The United Health Foundation is committed to equipping health leaders with data that will help inform their priorities and decisions as they manage all public health activities during this unprecedented time.

This year, America’s Health Rankings Health of Women and Children Data 2020 Update reveals a new model. The new model reflects the growing understanding of the impact of social determinants on health and the need for cross-sector collaboration from fields such as agriculture, economy, education, housing, justice and transportation, to improve population health and reduce health disparities.

The new model provides key stakeholders with access to the latest data and trends at the state and national level. This year’s release includes 131 measures of the health of women of reproductive age and children, including multiple chronic conditions, high-speed internet in households with children and food sufficiency among children. Among the new measures are three racial disparity measures: children in poverty racial gap, high school graduation racial gap and low birthweight racial gap. These measures are provided to highlight health disparities so that action can be taken to reduce health inequities. See Measures Selection and Changes for a detailed description of measure changes made in 2020.

The measures are available in the Explore Data section where you can read about the importance of each measure; find the measure definition, source and data year; examine trends; and see the data stratified by age, gender, race/ethnicity, education and income where available. State Summaries are also available. They provide a state-level view of the measures that features the strengths, challenges and highlights of every state. An added feature to the website this year allows users to compare related measures, including by model category (e.g., social & economic factors - women) and by population group (e.g., infants). We encourage policy-makers and the public to use the data to provide context regarding the health of women and children and existing health disparities.