A recently released study finds that Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard are the healthiest places to live in Massachusetts.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, along with the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, says Nantucket is the state’s healthiest county with Dukes County holding down the #2 spot. Barnstable County ranked #7 on the list.
Cape residents fared well in access to health care compared to the rest of the state, ranking as the 4th best county when it comes to medical care. Barnstable County also was rated the 5th best in the state in terms of quality of life.
However, Cape residents have a shorter life span than most residents in the Commonwealth, ranking 11th out of 14 in length of life.
Barnstable County experienced a higher number of violent crimes (428) than the statewide average of all 14 counties (403). Excessive alcohol use is higher on Cape Cod compared to Massachusetts as a whole, 21 percent compared to 19 percent. Barnstable County had a below average rate of alcohol-impaired driving deaths at 23 percent compared to the statewide average of 28 percent.
After Nantucket and Dukes, Middlesex, Norfolk, and Hampshire round out the top five healthiest counties in the state.