The healthiest communities in the country are also among those with the lowest rates of COVID-19 infections—further highlighting the direct link between social determinants of health and the pandemic, a new study from U.S. News & World Report and Aetna shows.

The two organizations released their annual ranking of the healthiest communities in the U.S. alongside an analysis of the impact of the novel coronavirus on these regions. They found that the 500 healthiest communities ranked in the list had a COVID-19 case rate that’s 40% lower than other counties.

The healthiest communities averaged 889 cases per 100,000 people, compared to an average of 1,493 cases per 100,000 people elsewhere, according to the report.

The community ranked as the country’s healthiest—Los Alamos, New Mexico—had one of the 100 lowest COVID-19 case rates in the country at 124 cases per 100,000.

Source: www.fiercehealthcare.com